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Millions of students wearing masks in Kenya have returned to school nine months after their closure to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Learners’ temperatures were checked and they had to use disinfectant before entering classrooms.
There was excitement in most of the schools as the students gathered, reports the BBC’s Ferdinand Omondi from Nairobi.
Kenya reopens schools nine months after closing to prevent spread of coronavirus https://t.co/DBuXrtqFZ2
– BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) January 4, 2021
Authorities say efforts have been made to ensure the safety of students and teachers.
But Kenya National Teachers Union general secretary Wilson Sossion told the BBC’s Newsday program that the back-to-school plan was “inadequate.”
He said the government had not released funds to schools to purchase thermometers, disinfectants and other items needed to implement health protocols.
Education Minister George Magoha has been particularly criticized for suggesting that schools should consider learning under trees as a way to avoid overcrowding in classrooms.
Some said the minister was expressing a cavalier attitude towards public schools which, compared to private schools, often have fewer resources to cater for their huge student population.
Kenya has reported nearly 97,000 cases of Covid-19 and more than 1,600 deaths since the outbreak began in March last year.
Over the weekend, President Uhuru Kenyatta extended a dusk-to-dawn curfew until March to help prevent the spread of the virus.
The BBC’s Focus on Africa program spoke with a teacher and a student about their experiences after their first day at school.
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