WHO Chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan urges Schools to Reopen

World Health Organization's (WHO) chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan has urged that states should reopen schools so that learning and overall health of the children are not affected.

In the absence of a vaccine, states should test more and isolate COVID-19 patients.

In an interview , Swaminathan informed that disruptions to instructional time in the classroom can have a severe impact on a child's ability to learn.

Swaminathan said that the states should prioritise and look onto how and when the schools can be reopened.

"The impact can be worse when the poor and marginalised children are out of school for long. They may not have facilities to access online education and many may not return to schools if they don't restart," Swaminathan added.

Calling it a tough task amid the increasing number of coronavirus cases, she said ""Preparation for reopening must start well in advance. Most government now have improved strategies to tract, test and isolate covid patients. We must continue to make use of these tools. Initially, schools should open in low incidence districts with staggered timings."

It is to be mentioned that the chief scientist also pointed out that being out of school increases the risk of child abuse, child marriage, violence and other threats.

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