Dr. Kuyok Abuol Kuyok , the Undersecretary at the Ministry of General Education and Instruction - credit | Eye Radio/Lou Nelson | April 1, 2022

The coronavirus pandemic has imposed an unusual academic calendar in the country, the undersecretary in the ministry of general education has said.

Dr. Kuyok Abuol Kuyok , the Undersecretary at the Ministry of General Education and Instruction says schools can no longer reopen in February as usual.

He said the government has been struggling to adjust the calendar that was ruined by lockdowns and other pandemic measures.

Last week, the government scheduled the reopening day for both primary and secondary schools across the country to May.

This was to allow the current senior four candidates to sit for their exams as well as to give time for marking previous examination papers.

Dr. Abuol told Eye Radio that the government will soon find a way back to the original calendar.

“Normally, we open schools in South Sudan in February, this is based on the general education Act 2012 but we have had this coronavirus imposed calendar,” Dr. Abuol said.

“We closed schools in March 2021 as a result of the outbreak of coronavirus and since then we have been struggling with the calendar because of covid-19.

“We have a senior four examination which is now scheduled for the 24^th of April. And we have the same teachers that are going to be involved in the invigilation and so forth and so forth.

“If you were to open earlier then you are going to have two form fours and that is going to make it a bit complicated for teachers, so we thought that we delay the reopening to the 2^nd of May so that teachers can now prepare their candidates for exams which are coming.”

Since the outbreak of COVID-19 in mid 2020, the government has declared a number of lockdown measures that have thrown the country’s education system into crisis.

According to reports, the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting closure of schools in the country exacerbated many of the challenges female learners face in pursuing an education.

Research found that increased poverty, domestic care work, early and forced marriage, and teenage pregnancy made it difficult for female learners to return to schools.