Schools in Male' region to reopen in October: Education Ministry

The Ministry of Education, on Saturday, announced the decision to reopen schools in the Greater Male' Region on October 4.

According to the ministry, the decision to resume classes for grades 9 to 12 at all schools located in Male', Vilimale' and Hulhumale' was finalised with input from the Health Protection Agency (HPA).

Following a period of closure since March 12 to contain the spread of COVID-19 in Maldives, teaching for all grades across the country resumed on July 1, except in the capital area.

Schools located in Male', the epicentre of Maldives' COVID-19 outbreak, only commenced teaching for grades nine to 12, while online lessons were provided for students of lower grades.

In response to a second surge of COVID-19 cases, the Ministry of Education once again closed all schools in the Male' region for a two-week period on August 4. The closure was repeatedly extended following the expiry of the initial period.

Maldives currently records a total of 10,014 virus cases of which 1,300 are active cases, in addition to 8,673 recoveries and 34 deaths.

During last month, authorities tightened the safety measures implemented in the Greater Male' region, following an alarming upsurge of COVID-19 cases after the state initiated efforts to steer the country towards a 'new normal' with the phased easing of lockdown restrictions.

After a long period of recording over 100 daily cases, the numbers have fallen to two-digits during the most part of September. Within this same period, the number of recoveries saw a significant increase, bringing the number of recovered cases to 86.4 percent.

As one of the most densely populated cities in the world, Maldives' capital Malé continues to record a significant number of COVID-19 cases, similar to the first weeks following the first confirmed local transmission on April 15.

On March 12, WHO classified the spread of COVID-19 as a global pandemic. To date, the new strain of novel coronavirus has infected over 32.5 million people and claimed over 989,300 lives around the world. However, out of those infected, more than 23.9 million people have recovered.