‘Insure school properties’
Nyore Madzianike Manicaland Bureau
SCHOOLS should insure their properties with reputable insurance companies to avoid total loss in the event of accidents such as fires, Minister of State for Manicaland Provincial Affairs Dr Ellen Gwaradzimba has said.
She said this after visiting Hartzell High School in Mutare where some buildings were gutted by fire on Saturday morning.
Dr Gwaradzimba said she discovered that a lot of schools were not insured.
“It is sad that quite a number of schools have not insured their properties, but I am relieved that the headmaster has just indicated that the buildings (at Hartzell) were insured,” he said.
“It was going to be difficult for us to find resources immediately to reconstruct the damaged classrooms and provide alternative facilities for our students.”
Dr Gwaradzimba expressed concern over the number of schools that were affected by Cyclone Idai that were not insured.
“Most schools in Chimanimani were not insured,” she said. “There are 33 primary schools that were affected by Cyclone Idai and they are not operational at the moment together with about 10 secondary schools.
“From the meetings that we had with the school administrators, it looks like most of these schools were not insured. We urge all schools to take out insurance policies so that in the event of such incidents like fires they get some kind of relief as a matter of urgency.”
Dr Gwaradzimba said she requested a report from Hartzell High School authorities chronicling the quantum of damage caused by the fire.
She said the report would assist them to seek assistance.
“I requested that the headmaster write a report and try to quantify the amount of damage and do some costing so that we can present the bill to the authorities that be and see the kind of intervention we can receive from both the Government and well-wishers,” she said.
The fire, suspected to have been caused by an electrical fault, razed down two blocks including a stationery storeroom.
The school authorities were still to ascertain the quantum of damage caused by the fire.