Bangladesh has added one more day to schools’ closure over electricity shortage ravaging the country.
The South Asian nation, through the Cabinet Secretary, Khandker Anwarul Islam, said it has added Saturday as one of the days school would be shut.
Schools in Bangladesh were previously open for six days a week – Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.
Last month, the country started a daily two-hour power cuts even as protesters stormed the streets after the government raised petrol prices by more than 50%.
The situation is due to the war in Ukraine, which as increased the cost of importing fuel and taken a toll on Bangladesh’s economy and foreign currency reserves.
Bangladesh generates most of its electricity from natural gas, some of which it also imports.
Meanwhile, for government offices and banks, their opening hours have been cut to seven hours a day instead of eight while private offices will be allowed to determine their operating hours.
Mr Islam further disclosed that the government would continue to provide power to villages, including in the early hours of the morning when crops are irrigated.
According to reports, officials have shut down all of the country’s diesel-driven power plants, which account for around 6% of Bangladesh’s electricity generation, because of the rising cost of fuel imports.
In July, Bangladesh became the third South Asian nation to seek a loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), after Sri Lanka and Pakistan, while the country’s foreign currency reserves have dwindled to around $40bn (£34bn).