Kuwait announces early summer break for teachers to conserve energy
Measures at government workplaces to curb power consumption
Cairo: Faced with a power crunch, Kuwait has brought forward the summer break of education staff as part of energy-saving measures.
The Ministry of Education announced the summer break for teaching and administrative staff in primary schools began at the close of business on Thursday, June 20, instead of July 2.
The break for all employees at the intermediate and secondary stages will begin on Monday, June 24, to conserve energy and ease the electricity load.
Additionally, locations for make-up school examinations will be merged and designated for each education zone. Working hours for exam invigilators and checkers will be reduced, allowing them to leave at noon, the ministry added.
The schools designated for the make-up exams, due to start Monday, will be reduced to 24, according to Kuwaiti newspaper Al Jarida, citing education sources.
Other Kuwaiti ministries have instructed their employees to follow energy-saving rules at the workplace to ease the load on the electricity network.
Kuwait's overall population is estimated at 4.8 million, including around 3.3 million foreigners.
Kuwait implemented scheduled power cuts for the first time last week amid soaring summer demand and high temperatures.
Over 40 areas in the country experienced a power outage on Wednesday, blamed on a spike in electricity consumption prompted by soaring temperatures. The Ministry of Electricity and Water said the rolling cuts could happen daily for up to two hours.