Government: Situation with virus does not warrant closure of schools

The government has stated that the situation regarding the Covid-19 disease in the country did not warrant closure of any schools in the country.

It comes after the Chief Medical Officer of ADK Hospital, Dr. Abdulla Niyaaf called for schools to be closed following six confirmed cases of the virus in the Maldives, albeit not in local communities. However, Dr. Niyaaf’s call was reiterated by the Maldives Medical Association as well.

Government Spokesperson Mabrook Azeez, at a news conference last night, responded to a question by “Sun” regarding the matter. Mabrook said that the government’s strategic action plan laid out the steps to be taken in certain situations regarding public gatherings. He cited the government’s standard operating procedure when he said that no island in the country was in a situation that called for a closure of schools.

“This is done with research and surveys adhering to international standards. Looking at it, it hasn’t been done (closing schools) because no island with a situation has escalated to that point has been identified,”

“I contacted the Education minister to discuss regarding the matter. She said that no option was off the table and that the ministry was preparing for the steps and all scenarios for the upcoming days. Meaning that case developments in islands and whether schools should be closed or not is being monitored.” said Mabrook.

According to the action plan formulated by the government, schools are to be closed only if the alert levels in an island rises to orange or red. Currently, no inhabited islands barring resorts are in these alert levels.