About 90 percent of the schools damaged during the flood disaster have now been repaired, according to Abdullah Al-Thaqafi, Director General of Education at the Jeddah Governorate. “Among these schools are Habib Bin Zeid and Abu Al-Aswad Al-Du'ali schools. An engineering official is scheduled to make a final inspection of the two schools to ensure that they are actually ready to be used.” Al-Thaqafi said his administration has relocated Al-Hatteem and Izzeldin Al-Qasim secondary schools to new buildings. The handover will take place within weeks, he said. During a tour Sunday, Al-Thaqafi inspected the rehabilitation and maintenance works carried out at various schools and checked on the readiness of children to return to classes. He started the tour with a meeting at the Education and Social Services Center set up by the Jeddah Education Department. The center provides guidance, awareness and psychological programs for residents of the flood-hit districts. The center also deals with challenges facing schoolchildren, including transportation for those who have been relocated to other areas for classes. The meeting, which was attended by Kamal Al-Ghamdi, Assistant Director General for School Affairs and Director of Administration, discussed the services that the center will provide. This includes rehabilitating and cleaning public utilities, streets, mosques, schools and primary health care centers. During the meeting, Al-Thaqafi said the center was also striving to provide psychological and health services. He stressed that no donations or assistance would be required because officials of the department were carrying out the work, in line with certain specific regulations. In the flood-hit districts of Quwaizah, Al-Musa'ed and Al-Sawa'ed, Al-Thaqafi inspected the progress thus far in repairing five damaged schools. He also visited schools that have been provided as an alternative for pupils who have not been able to return to their own schools. He checked on students' attendance at these schools. He also met with several students' guardians and listened to their problems and comments. Al-Thaqafi praised the efforts of headmasters and teachers of flood-damaged schools for their perseverance in difficult circumstances.
