The reopening of schools in Swaziland (eSwatini) is to
be delayed because the number of coronavirus cases continues to rise.
Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini said
there was ‘panic’ among many Swazi people ‘following the drastic increase in
the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases in the Kingdom’. There had been 93
positive cases reported in the past week.
As of 11 June 2020 there had been three deaths and 449
positive cases recorded by the Ministry of Health.
Dlamini had previously announced a phased reopening of
schools from 1 July. In a statement on
11 June he announced this would be put back to 6 July.
He said, ‘The events of the past week, however, have
necessitated that Government reviews the decision of opening schools to ensure
that all necessary precautions and preparations are in place before teachers
and our children get back to class in a safely manner.’
Swaziland has been in partial lockdown since 27 March.
In parts of the kingdom many
businesses have been allowed to reopen with health restrictions. Gatherings
of more than 20 people remain banned and people are urged to keep off the
streets unless their journey is essential.
Dlamini said, ‘While the decision to reopen was based
on the premise that our economy cannot stay in lockdown forever, we cannot in
any way let up on the precautionary guidelines in this fight. It is of
paramount importance that while we gradually reopen the economy, we still take
individual responsibility for our health.’
On Thursday (11 June 2020) it was reported that Minister of
Health Lizzie Nkosi went into self-isolation after her secretary tested
positive for coronavirus. Nkosi was tested and found to be negative.
See also
Work
still to be done before Swaziland schools open after coronavirus lockdown
No comments:
Post a Comment