THE Health and Child Care ministry has resolved to cordon off boarding schools to curb the surge in COVID-19 cases within the learning institutions across the country.
Situational reports released by the Health ministry show
that schools currently account for the majority of the COVID-19 cases recorded
daily.
On Thursday, of the 330 new cases reported, 65% were
recorded in schools.
As of Thursday, there were 1 281 schoolchildren and 131
teachers who had tested positive for COVID-19 across the country, according to
the Health ministry.
In a statement yesterday, the Health ministry, however,
said the situation was under control, adding that it had strengthened control
measures, including intensifying vaccination of the eligible population in
schools.
Under the new measures, parents will not be allowed to
visit their children in boarding facilities.
“These bulks of the cases are being reported mainly from
boarding secondary schools across the country through the enhanced surveillance
mounted by the ministry in collaboration with the Ministry of Primary and
Secondary Education using the joint operational plan for the coordinated
prevention and management of the COVID-19 pandemic at all learning institutions
in the country,” the Health ministry said.
“The ministry wishes to assure the nation and the affected
parents that measures are being taken to safeguard the safety and health of the
affected learners. The following mitigation measures have been put in place.
Most of the reported cases have been mild and not requiring hospitalisation and
no fatalities have been reported.”
Government said it would increase COVID-19 testing
facilities of all suspected cases on-site, enhance isolation and management of
all positive cases at the affected schools, and also quarantine all learners
that would have been exposed to the virus at their schools.
Information minister Monica Mutsvangwa announced during a
post-Cabinet media briefing on Tuesday that the cases being recorded in schools
were insignificant to warrant schools closure.
However, findings of investigations conducted by the
Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (Artuz) on adherence of schools to
government set standard operating procedures during the pandemic show that
schools were incapacitated to adhere to the guidelines.
In the report, which was released yesterday, Artuz said
there was a 10% drop in safety of school environments since the reopening of
schools on August 23, 2021 in comparison with the previous terms.
“The outcome of the Artuz investigation reflected that all
sampled schools remain COVID-19 danger zones because of shortages of required
resources to reduce the spread of the pandemic disease, unavailability of
COVID-19 test kits in schools and inadequate supply of vaccines in communities
surrounding schools,” Artuz said in the report.
“The investigation observations reflected that there is a
10% drop in the percentage safety of school environments since the reopening of
schools on August 23, and September 6, 2021 in comparison with the state of
safety in the previous terms across the nation.”
Teachers unions said schools had limited testing
capacities, which raised fears that the figures of the actual pupils and
learners who were infected by the virus were higher than those reported.
They warned that the situation could get worse and possibly
drive a fourth COVID-19 wave in the country.
“Government has a problem of providing immediate and temporary solutions to problems,” Artuz
president Orbet Masaraure said.
“The problem of COVID-19 in schools should be addressed
holistically. Banning movement in boarding schools is a temporary measure. It
appears like the government is shooting itself in the foot. How are the pupils
going to carry out the Continuous Assessment Learning Activities if they have
been locked in schools? Schools were never prepared to reopen, which is
evidenced by the inconsistencies in policies on the problem at hand.”
Zimbabwe National Teachers Union chief executive officer
Manuel Nyawo said banning movements at boarding schools would not resolve the
crisis because a majority of them were recording COVID-19 cases.
The government should develop a culture of consulting
stakeholders before imposing decisions,” he said.
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