The Indonesian government plans to reopen 130 schools damaged by the Dec. 26 Indian Ocean tsunami in the Sumatra province of Aceh on Wednesday, a local official said Tuesday.

"The schools have been cleaned up from mud and damage has been repaired so that students can resume classes," Aceh provincial education office head Anas Adam was quoted by the Antara news agency as saying.

The earthquake-triggered tsunami has destroyed 756 school buildings in the province. The government estimates that 177,000 of total 520,000 elementary students in Aceh have lost classes after the tsunami.

According to a government figure, 1,757 teachers were either killed or missing in the disaster.

The Indonesian government and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) will recruit 2,500 voluntary teachers to meet the need, said the report.

(Xinhua News Agency January 25, 2005)