04 Mar 2021

Parliament has been informed that Jao Primary School would open doors for pupils in the second term this year.

Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development Mr Setlhabelo Modukanele said Jao Flats, a settlement in the Okavango Sub-district, was completely surrounded by water, accessible by canoes or flying in, making driving impractical.

Answering a question in Parliament on Tuesday, he said a decision to build a two-teacher primary school was made in 2017, and elevated reed classrooms were constructed. The school, he said, was provided with two porta cabins for teacher accommodation, administration block and ablution facilities, while a solar plant had been installed and commissioned in August 2019.

Mr Modukanele said tender for potable water treatment plant and sewage treatment plant had been awarded and the project was expected to be completed before the end of the current financial year. He noted that the project was delayed by sourcing of suitable materials as experts had advised against the use of brick and mortar as it would cause the place to submerge.

The assistant minister further said unavailability of potable water and sewage also delayed the opening of the school.

MP Caterpillar Hikuama of Ngami had asked the minister to brief Parliament on the long-awaited Jao Primary School. He further asked the minister to state whether the school would be opened this year as promised and also wanted to know what caused the delay. ENDS