This archive report was first published on 24 June 2020.
As schools prepare to reopen in September, the government is facing a daunting task in ensuring pupils adhere to social distancing protocols.
According to Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha, experts from the Ministry of Health have advised that classrooms, which hold an average of 45 students, be decongested to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
‘We’ve been advised by the Ministry of Health that a class should have between 15 and 20 students. This is going to be a big challenge because schools do not have sufficient learning facilities,’ Magoha said.
The country has approximately 24 million primary and secondary school students, and social distancing means more than 15 million will have to find alternative learning facilities.
Some schools, especially in urban centers, have more than 70 students in one classroom, exacerbating the problem.
The teacher shortage, which stands at 130,000 across the entire basic education sector, means schools cannot effect radical timetable changes or split classrooms into manageable sizes to adhere to the health protocols.
Furthermore, thousands of teachers are well into their fifties, and therefore, in the age cohort thought to be most vulnerable to Covid-19. Their absence from school will only deepen the staffing problem.
Magoha said the government is racing against time to ensure that schools have the necessary health requirements, including sanitizers, thermo guns, and hand-washing tanks before they reopen.
He toured the Kitui County Textiles Centre to assess its capacity to manufacture quality face masks for school children. The factory, which will be producing the required number of masks within the stipulated period, will be joined by Rivatex and the National Youth Service.
‘There will be no negotiations about pupils wearing masks in school. We must produce 24 million masks in the next 45 days to give each pupil two,’ Magoha said.
Head teachers will be required to report to schools two weeks before they reopen to ensure their stations meet the required conditions to ensure students’ safety, and also to be trained on how to handle Covid-related cases.
Kitui Governor Charity Ngilu, who took Magoha round Kicotec, said the factory was ready to deliver the masks within the stipulated time.
The minimum requirements upon reopening have been outlined as clean running water and soap for hand washing or hand sanitizers. Learning institutions will also be required to sanitize often-touched objects such as door knobs, light switches, and stair railings with disinfectant.
According to an Infotrak poll released on Sunday, 70 per cent of the citizenry is opposed to reopening schools before the pandemic is contained.
President Uhuru Kenyatta on June 1 asked the Education and Health ministries to chart a road map towards reopening the institutions of learning.
