Beginning on Monday, all schools in South Sudan will be closed due to an intense heat wave that is predicted to linger for two weeks. The health and education ministries urged parents to keep all of their kids inside because of the predicted 45 degree Celsius (113 degree Fahrenheit) heat wave.
A statement released late on Saturday stated that any school found to be open during the warning period would have its registration revoked, but it did not say for how long.
The ministries said they “will continue to monitor the situation and inform the public accordingly.”
Resident Peter Garang, who lives in the capital, Juba, welcomed the decision. He said “schools should be connected to the electricity grid” to enable the installation of air conditioners.
Among the youngest countries in the world, South Sudan is most susceptible to the effects of climate change; heat waves are frequent, but temperatures rarely rise above 400 C (104 F). Living conditions for citizens of the east African nation have been challenging because to civil strife, drought, and flooding.
South Sudan “continues to face a dire humanitarian crisis” as a result of war, economic instability, climatic change, and an influx of people fleeing the conflict in neighbouring Sudan, according to the World Food Program’s most recent country brief. It also mentioned that in January, 818,000 individuals who were considered vulnerable received cash transfers and food.
The government is keeping an eye on climate change and taking all necessary preparations to ensure that as few people as possible are impacted by this hot wave.
