159 schools, 85,000 students affected due to Beirut explosion

The Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), Audrey Azoulay, said on Thursday that 159 private and public schools as well as 85,000 students were affected by Beirut’s explosions.

TOPSHOT – This picture taken on August 4, 2020 shows a general view of the scene of an explosion at the port of Lebanon’s capital Beirut. – Two huge explosion rocked the Lebanese capital Beirut, wounding dozens of people, shaking buildings and sending huge plumes of smoke billowing into the sky. Lebanese media carried images of people trapped under rubble, some bloodied, after the massive explosions, the cause of which was not immediately known. (Photo by STR / AFP) (Photo by STR/AFP via Getty Images)

Azoulay disclosed this during her tour at the Port of Beirut after her visit to schools in Achrafieh, an area heavily affected by the explosions.

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“We need approximately 22 million dollars to rehabilitate destroyed walls in these schools,” Azoulay said.

UNESCO is keen to support Lebanon’s education and culture sector since “a future of a nation can only be built through schools,” she noted.

Azoulay also emphasised the need to support Lebanon in the field of online education given the outbreak of COVID-19.

“We have coordinated efforts to identify needs and mobilize funds to start rehabilitation work when sanitary circumstances permit it,” she said.

Two huge explosions rocked Port of Beirut at around 6:10 p.m. local time (1510 GMT) on Aug. 4, shaking buildings all over the Lebanese capital, while killing at least 183 people and wounding around 6,000 others. (Xinhua/NAN)

159 schools, 85,000 students affected due to Beirut explosion — UNESCO