[Source: Ministry of Education/Facebook]

Schools in the Northern and Eastern Division including all maritime schools will open from today.

However,  schools in Viti Levu will remain closed.

Permanent Secretary of Education Selina Kuruleca says the decision was made following close consultation with the National Disaster Management Office.

She says they are concerned for the safety and accessibility of students who are travelling from outside these areas.

She says some students come from outside the towns, crossing streams and roads.

She says considering the safety of these students, they will continue to keep Viti Levu schools closed.

Additionally, she says boarding schools with boarders onsite may continue with their instructional programs.

She says parental discretion must be exercised at all times, and Heads of Schools must continue to liaise with their School Management Committees, District, and Divisional Officers for further updates.

A circular detailing contingency plans to recover lost learning and teaching time will be disseminated to schools in the next few days.

She says they recognize that schools may prefer to use different modalities to recover the lost learning and teaching time, so they will provide a few options to them.

She says they will not cut into the school term holidays.

Kuruleca adds that tertiary institutions are advised to use their discretion regarding their class offerings.