US$11 million available to rebuild schools in Nampula, Zambézia and Niassa

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US$11 million available to rebuild schools in Nampula, Zambézia and Niassa

11:53 CAT | 15 Mar 2017

Noticias (File photo)

About US$11 million is now available to finance the rebuilding of schools damaged by natural disasters across the country, using more resilient materials and technology.

The provinces of Nampula, Zambézia and Niassa, worst affected by the wind and rain, will be chief beneficiaries of the project. According to official figures, about 1,471 classrooms will be rebuilt, of which 433 will be of conventional construction, and 1,038 built using local materials.

National Director of Infrastructures and School Equipment of the Ministry of Education and Human Development (MINEDH) António Grachane announced the development in an interview with Notícias, adding the work will start within days, and must comply with material and construction quality standards.

The program will be implemented over a period of three years and may be extended if necessary. Tenders for contractors are to be launched shortly.

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“There are schools to be rebuilt in other parts of the country, but our attention is focused on these three provinces. Much of the infrastructure that will be rebuilt was destroyed by the floods of 2015/16, ” António Grachane said. [Are you doing something about this strike-through text, Lucia? 2016-17?]

Grachane explained that the buildings erected must take into account the climate in the region, so that schools are not routinely destroyed by bad weather.

“Stronger schools should be built in areas where there are strong winds, and where there is flooding, buildings must also be built to withstand it,” Grachane said. “What we want here is for a simple flood not to be enough to carry a school away, which is called resilient buildings, where the foundations are strong.”

Grachane said his department has information on weather conditions in each region of the country to help technicians design buildings that take specific problems into account.

“We observe this in the modern world. In seismic zones such as Japan, buildings are built with certain characteristics to make them more resistant to earthquakes. In fact, even here, in Mozambique, we have some well-built infrastructures that are resistant to gales and floods,” Grachane said.

Source: Noticias