Kano fixes Oct. 11 for schools reopening, sets modalities

By RABIU SANI

The Kano State Government has released a time table for re-opening of public and private schools for the third term academic year.

The state’s Commissioner for Education, Mr Muhammad Sanusi-Kiru, released the time table at a news conference on Thursday in Kano.

Sanusi-Kiru disclosed that the schools would be re-opened in phases and that exit class students in public and private schools would resume between Oct. 11 and Oct. 12.

He said that primary I and II pupils would attend classes on Mondays and Tuesdays while primary 3, 4 and 5 would attend classes on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.

The commissioner explained that exit class students in junior and senior secondary schools would resume full academic activities to enable them prepare for transitional and qualifying g examinations.

Sanusi-Kiru said that JSS1 and SS1 students would remain at home for additional five weeks untill the end of the transitional and qualifying examinations.

He said that the 15 Tsangaya Integrated and registered Islamic schools would also resume on Oct. 12, adding that the measure was to ensure compliance with social distancing and COVID-19 protocols.

The commissioner warned proprietors of Islamic schools against collecting fees from parents for the provision of Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) for the students.

“Kano State Government is determined to provide enough PPEs to all registered Islamic schools.

“The State Government took full responsibility for the fumigation and provision of PPEs to staff and students of the 8,582 public schools in addition to the private ones,” he said.

He said that the State Government had procured 3,000 set of furniture for distribution to 500 schools in the state.

Sanusi-Kiru also revealed that the government had fumigated 538 schools and six technical colleges to ensure safety during the West African Examinations Council and National Board for Technical Education examinations.

He said that some 260 Arabic schools were also fumigated during the National Board for Arabic and Islamic Studies examinations, while 1,253 schools would be disinfected for the forthcoming National Examination Commission.

The commissioner said that a ministerial technical committee would be constituted soon to conduct damage assessment in schools, to pave way for rehabilitation of the schools.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the State Government had disbursed over N800 million for schools’ rehabilitation in the 44 Local Government Areas of the state.

The government also earmarked N3.2 billion for rehabilitation and construction of additional classrooms to fast-track the reopening of the schools. (NAN)