DRC: school resumes this Monday, January 08

The resumption of classes has been officially confirmed for Monday, January 8, 2023, throughout the entire country. This confirmation comes from Professor Tony Mwaba Kazadi, National Minister of Primary, Secondary, and Technical Education (EPST). The minister responded to a fake document attributed to him that insinuates some sort of indefinite postponement of the resumption. The same message was echoed by the Secretary General of the EPST, Ms. Christine Nepa Nepa, who also confirmed it in an official statement. “Contrary to an official statement signed by a certain Minister of State for EPST, which is circulating on social media (…), stating that the resumption of classes has been postponed (…), I wish to confirm that, in strict accordance with the 2023–2024 school calendar, the start of the second term of this school year remains set for Monday, January 8, 2024, in accordance with each school’s class schedule, and this applies throughout the entire Democratic Republic of the Congo,” she wrote. She also calls on all directors of educational provinces (Proved) to hold urgent meetings with provincial committees to take “necessary measures to ensure strict adherence to the 2023-2024 school calendar.” They will then be able to prepare “a detailed report” to account for the activities of Monday, January 8, 2024. As a reminder, the Christmas and New Year’s holidays, which fall within the first quarter, began on December 18, 2023, and end on January 6, 2024. Bruno Nsaka