The Director of Education in the Kavango East Region, Fanuel Kapapero, has indicated that the new primary school being constructed in Rundu’s Sauyemwa residential area will only open next month. He said in an interview with NAMPA on Wednesday the school will not open this month as envisioned, but will only open in February since the school’s sewer system is not yet connected to the town’s sewerage system. “I have been there myself and spoke to the manager on-site. The first thing is that the sewerage system is not connected, as is the electricity, but the sub-contractor to install the electricity is also on-site,” said Kapapero. The primary school is costing the Government nearly N$24 million to build and NAMPA understands it will be named the Markus Sitongeni Ihemba Primary School. Regarding staff members, the director said the staff will be appointed from the teaching vacancies advertised last year, but the principal, a few heads of department and teachers with experience will also be transferred from nearby schools. Kapapero noted that the school will only accommodate learners from Sauyemwa Primary School and Sauyemwa Combined School for now because it was built to lessen the burden on the two overpopulated schools. With regards to the readiness of other schools in the region to open later this month, the director cautioned that the COVID-19 pandemic has not ended and cases are on the increase, thus the postponement of the opening of schools. In the same vein, Kapapero encouraged schools to follow the established health protocols when schools do open. The Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture has announced that schools will only open on 26 January instead of next week due to the increase in COVID-19 cases. -NAMPA