DR Congo children affected by Ebola return to school

The UN Children's Fund reports that the vast majority of children living in Ebola-affected areas in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have returned to school and learned how to avoid the infection.

The school started a month ago in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The UN Children's Fund says efforts to get children back to school in Ebola-affected areas in conflict-ridden eastern DRC have been successful.

80% of students attend schools in the health zones of Beni and Mabalako. They are the epicenters of the current Ebola outbreak, declared on August 1 in the provinces of North Kivu and Ituri. The latest report from the World Health Organization lists 207 cases of Ebola, including 130 deaths.

UNICEF spokesman Christophe Boulierac said the return of so many children to classrooms is encouraging. He said the school offered children living in an area of ​​epidemic and conflict a sense of normalcy. He said that the school offers them a protective environment.

Boulierac said school children were learning to prevent the Ebola virus and, when they go home, encourage regular hand washing with their families. He says it helps to prevent the spread of the disease in the community.

UNICEF has identified more than 1,500 schools in areas affected by the Ebola outbreak. Among them, 365 schools located in high-risk epicenters of the epidemic. The agency has equipped these schools with sanitary and hygiene facilities.

Boulierac said more than 3,500 teachers and school principals had received training on preventative measures against Ebola. He said that more than 69,300 schoolchildren have received these Ebola prevention messages.