Federal Govt gives definite conditions for reopening of schools

The Federal Ministry of Education says it will publish post-COVID-19 guidelines for the reopening of schools across the country. According to the Minister of State for Education Emeka Nwajiuba, the federal government is working on a model to ensure that all children do not return to school at the same time, with a view to facilitating physical distancing and sanitation.

He said schools will remain closed until the Federal Government is sure pupils could attend classes without the risk of contracting COVID-19.

The Minister made the disclosure at the daily briefing of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 (PTF), clarifying that an announcement suggesting schools would reopen June 8, 2020 did not emanate from government, he said the administration would work in tandem with experts and the World Health Organisation (WHO) before schools can resume.

His words: “We want all our children to go to school by the time the schools would have been able to achieve physical distancing. The plan entails adopting a two-shift system and allowing those who will write exams to return earlier than others.Use this period to upgrade skills and think of how to make their teachings impactful. We are looking at sanitary conditions of all the schools.

“SUBEB (State Universal Basic Education Board) should use some of the money we give them to upgrade sanitary conditions in schools. We are also looking at having sanitatisation booths, working with NASENI (National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure). It is a forewarning to private and state governments to ensure that these things are put in place before schools can reopen,” the minister said.

Nwajiuba explained that for tertiary institutions, there would be the need to have a semester within a semester for the students. He explained that some courses would run in a semester first while others would follow suit in order to maintain physical distancing and urged lecturers in tertiary institutions to use the period to upgrade themselves.

For secondary schools, the Minister said students in senior classes might resume before their junior counterparts. The plan, according to him, is that children should resume by the time schools have achieved physical distancing measures.

“We may have classes in the morning and afternoon at the moment, for the purpose of physical distancing, and all the infrastructure within the school will be used to achieve this,” he explained.

Schools must be ready to display hand sanitiser machines, he said, adding that a key condition for reopening would be the availability of all the materials needed to stop the spread of COVID-19.