This archive report was first published on 24 August 2020.
On August 24, 2020, Education CS George Magoha expressed concerns about the readiness of Kenyan schools to reopen, amidst pressure from the government to do so.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF had urged African countries to reopen schools, citing the negative impact of prolonged closure on youth. However, Magoha questioned why WHO was pushing for African schools to reopen, yet governments were only following their instructions.
“Do you think it is our president and his government who have the interests of our children at heart or is it WHO and UNICEF? The same WHO is double-speaking,” Magoha said during a media briefing at Kitale Technical Training Institute.
Magoha claimed that WHO was using African children as guinea pigs to test if the rest of the world could reopen schools. He also questioned why the same organization had not asked Asian countries to reopen schools.
Education stakeholders are set to meet next week to review the trends in COVID-19 infections in Kenya and discuss the possibility of reopening schools.
