Kisumu tightens Covid-19 protocols as students resume studies – KBC

Kisumu County has heightened measures to ensure safety of learners as they travel back to various learning institutions amid the surging Covid-19 infections in the area.

County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Education, ICT and Human Resource Development,  John Awiti, speaking at his office, Monday, said that they have liaised with the Ministry of Health (MoH) to protect the students from contracting the virus as they resume studies after  half-term break.

“We have held consecutive meetings with the school heads and alerted various staff in the Sub-counties on the standard needed to ensure that there is a proper screening of our students,” Mr.Awiti said, adding that the Ministry of Health (MoH) would ensure that there are enough thermoguns in learning institutions.

The County has established a committee of health personnel charged with the responsibility of verifying the school’s preparedness in terms of containing Covid-19.

He further said that National and Provincial schools offering admissions for students from other counties should be careful to prevent intercounty transmission.

Such schools were urged to ensure students and staffs adhere to the MoH Covid-19 protocols such as, wearing of face masks properly, regular handwashing, and maintaining social distance.

The Ministry of Education has since suspended external examinations and co-curricular activities  such as sports, music, drama festivals and tournaments as a way of reducing overcrowding in schools.

The Minister reiterated that schools that have few classes and a high number of students should embrace under-shade teaching to help curb the spread of Covid-19 that is now pondering the lakeside County.

Mr Awiti commended the school heads and health officials for good work since no major incident have been reported in schools since students resumed learning for their third term in May this year.

“I thank the almighty God that we have had rare or no serious case of the virus in our institutions and that is a sign that we are working smart as a Ministry,” he said.