KITWE City Council has closed seven boarding houses

KITWE City Council has closed seven boarding houses in the city for operating below the required minimum standards.
Council acting public relations manager Dorothy Sampa, who confirmed the closure of the boarding houses yesterday, said out of the seven boarding houses closed, six belonged to Copperstone University while one was for Nkana College of Education.
She said the facilities were closed mainly for sanitary reasons as they were found without adequate facilities like lavatories, besides being overly congested.
Ms Sampa said for one to open or turn a house into a boarding house, the procedure was that the facility should first be inspected and certified fit by the local authority before it could become operational.
“When one turns their house or residence into a boarding house, they need to first inform the local authority in order to have their property registered for such purposes.
“It is important that minimum living standards are observed so as not to compromise the
lives of students,” she said.
Ms Sampa said for a person to open a boarding house, it was important to follow the rules such as that of having two bunk beds in one room in order to accommodate four people per room.
“In a room for a boarding house, each room is supposed to only accommodate four people and should have two bunk beds to allow some space in the room and avoid transmission of diseases,” she said.
She said the boarding houses that had been shut did not meet the required standards.
Ms Sampa said efforts aimed at addressing the shortage of accommodation in institutions of higher learning would always be appreciated as long as the health of students was not compromised.

Times of Zambia