Emeka Nwajiuba, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Education, has said schools in the country may reopen after the ban on interstate travels had been lifted.
The Nigerian Government in March closed all schools indefinitely as part of measures to curb the spread of Coronavirus.
Nwajiuba said this while speaking during the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 in Abuja daily briefing on Monday.
He maintained that a date for reopening had not been decided upon during considerations on students safety.
He said, “We want to open when it is safe to do so. We have heard about neighbouring countries that opened and shut. We have heard about cases spiking with children getting into school. Of all the things I will like to do, I will not like to experiment with your children.
“We want a situation where once we are sure it is safe, we can then take them into school.
“I had a meeting with the representatives of WAEC and NABTEB and I understand how that worries our parents at the moment and how anxious our children are to know what next.
“As soon as those in charge of the blockade lift it because there is no way we can open our schools if teachers can’t come. So, we are looking at somewhere after the interstate lockdown is lifted. Because we will need that kind of openness for the children to move.”
