By IREEN MULENGA
The Zambia Open Community Schools (ZOCS) Executive Director Cleopatra Muma says the Covid-19 pandemic has continued to affect the implementation of projects that aim at ensuring that orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) enjoy their right to quality education.
Ms Muma said the disruption of education has a heavy impact on learning for children and is likely to affect the organization’s action to enrolling the out of school children back into school.
“Since last year when the Covid-19 Pandemic pronounced, a number of projects had to be rescheduled, under the circumstances, it forced us to continue to review the plans of action, to make sure that we reached out the children who are out of school,” she said.
She said that the situation demands for a continuous review of plans which increase requests to partners for contingency funds to support unexpected realities in community schools.
Ms Muma said that the Organization has been implementing different projects in the Country which includes provision in the supply of learning materials, feeding of teaching materials, Teachers training, building capacity of Community structures, engagement meetings with different stakeholders and construction of children play parks.
She said from last year, the Organization has embarked on new ways of resource mobilization and priorities programs to ensure that Schools, learners and Teachers are protected.
Ms Muma has urged Communities to take the Covid-19 seriously and follow the guidelines put in place by health authorities.
