The debate on whether schools should reopen has continued to dominate the public sphere for weeks now. In most countries, schools have been closed for in-person learning following the outbreak of the coronavirus. Last week, the World Health Organisation (WHO) urged African governments to expedite the process to reopen schools, citing the challenges of closing schools for prolonged periods. Some of the challenges, according to WHO, include poor nutrition, exposure to violence and exploitation for labor, teen pregnancies, and stress, among others. Currently, only six countries have fully reopened schools in Africa. According to the WHO, just as countries are reopening other businesses safely, schools can also be reopened. Indeed, most of the businesses are have now reopened and are progressively adjusting to the ‘new normal’ of operating under the strenuous conditions to avoid the spread of the virus. However, schools are slightly different from other businesses. For instance, it is extremely difficult for children to maintain social distance while in school and while science points to a minimal impact of the virus on children without any pre-existing conditions, they still remain carriers of the virus. It is also important that we look at other countries like Israel and South Africa, which reopened schools, only to close them after spikes in coronavirus cases. Fortunately, the government of Rwanda has been consistent in saying that any reopening of schools will only be guided by science and will be determined after a thorough assessment of the situation and this is the best way to go about it. Locally, we are not short of examples of what could happen if we hastily open schools. The recent spike in cases of coronavirus mainly in Kigali has been traced to markets, where, just like schools, it is difficult to social distance.
