Several Conditions Must Be Met Before Schools Can Reopen – FG

The Federal Government just released a 52-page set of guidelines for the reopening of schools in Nigeria.

However, despite listing various conditions that must be met, the government is yet to give a specific date as to when schools should reopen.

According to the Chairman of the Presidential Taskforce PTF on Covid-19 and Secretary to the Government of the Federation SGF, Mr. Boss Mustapha, the Federal Ministry of Education has released Guidelines for Schools and Learning Facilities reopening after COVID-19 Pandemic closure and the guidelines clearly state the major things to consider before schools and learning facilities shall reopen.

He added that the pandemic would not go away by a wish, and things will get worse for students if things are done without considerations for their safety.

His words, “The pandemic would not go away by a wish, neither would it go away if we refuse to keep safe.

“All government offices shall continue to hold virtual meetings in their offices especially where participants exceed four persons and suspend all unnecessary travels for meetings.

“For corporate organizations, Board members, etc, the reopening of the domestic flights should not be misconstrued. The PTF strongly encourages virtual meetings as well.

“We still urge places of worship to cautiously follow the guidelines on public gatherings; and we urge members of the political class particularly in states where elections are scheduled for September and October to exercise utmost circumspection in their gathering for whatever reasons.”

“The PTF has assessed the circumstances and has put in place necessary guidelines to be followed while the managers of the sector have the responsibility for drawing up the protocols and determining the dates. We urge Nigerians to follow closely the critical steps being taken by the Federal Ministry of Education in conjunction with other stakeholders.

“Further to this, the Federal Ministry of Education has released Guidelines for Schools and Learning Facilities reopening after COVID-19 Pandemic closure. The guidelines clearly spell out major things to consider before schools and learning facilities shall reopen, the reopening process, sequencing and scheduling of safe reopening and decisions about schools reopening. The Minister of State for Education will elaborate on this.”

“The PTF recognizes the efforts of our innovators, researchers and research institutions in working to get a solution to the COVID-19, especially its cure. However, we refrain from misleading the public into believing that a cure has been found or certified when indeed the validation processes was still on-going. This call is necessitated by the recent publication that a cure for COVID-19 had been listed by NAFDAC. The Agency has debunked the claim and we advise Nigerians to be vigilant.”

“The Federal and state governments should be guided by recommendations, advice, or directives from the World Health Organization (WHO), Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH), and Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) for effective risk avoidance and mitigation of the effect of COVID-19.

“Decision making should also involve all major stakeholders, including government at all levels, communities, and civil society. This is to ensure that decisions and planned actions are based on comprehensive analysis, consensus, and adequate consideration for context”.