Schools in Qatar are to close during the FIFA World Cup, as the country finalises preparations for the mega event starting in November.
According to ministerial circulars already issued by the Ministry of Education, the current first term – which began on August 14 – will end on Friday 18 November, after which the vacation period will begin.
The World Cup begins two days later in Doha – and ends of December 18. Schools will return on December 25 for the start of the second term.
No online schooling will be undertaken during this period, with the new schedule helping easing the burden on transportation and other key infrastructure facilities during the World Cup.
Earlier today, Arabian Business reported Qatar is to shut its borders to anyone not attending the World Cup, between November 1 and December 23.
All land, sea and air borders will effectively to be shut to anyone not holding the Hayya Card – the fan ID issued by the government to anyone attending matches during the World Cup. Hayya Card holders can stay in the country until January 23.
Qatari citizens, residents, GCC citizens holding a Qatari ID card, and anyone with a personal or work visa are exempt from these rules, but it does mean that anyone planning on visiting the country for tourism purposes without a Hayya Card will not be able to enter.
FIFA has sold 2.45 million of the three million tickets available, with thousands of fans expected to start arriving from mid-November.
The World Cup’s first match on November 20 will feature the hosts Qatar taking on Ecuador, while England play Iran the following day.
Although borders will be closed to non-soccer fans, hundreds of thousands of visitors are expected in nearby cities such as Dubai, which is building fanzones to accommodate them.
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