Freetown, February 5 (RHC)-- Sierra Leone has announced plans to reopen the schools in the country, which have been shut down to prevent the spread of the deadly Ebola virus. In a statement on Wednesday, President Ernest Bai Koroma's office said his administration would reopen the country's schools on March 30th.

The president has ordered the necessary preparations ahead of the reopening, the statement added. President Koroma has issued instructions to relevant authorities to start work on "water and sanitation issues, Ebola screenings and psychosocial support."

Meanwhile, Education Minister Minkailu Bah said the schools would be equipped with thermometers and other Ebola detection equipments. "Thermometers will be made available to all schools to deal with any sudden attack before referral to a holding center," the minister added.

The schools have been shut down across the country for at least seven months.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the Ebola outbreak has killed nearly 9,000 people around the world, almost all of them in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea.