EDITORIAL: As anticipated with the reopening of schools represents the biggest test yet for the government's decision to go back to business as usual. It had to come earlier rather than later since Pakistan had done much better than most in terms of controlling the spread of the coronavirus as well as the number of deaths occurring because of it and everybody from internationally-recognised philanthropists to individual country heads to the World Health Organization (WHO) appreciated this fact. The government very rightly congratulated itself for this achievement and welcomed all the students back to their schools, especially since all the necessary Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) have been thoroughly communicated to all educational institutes around the country. But keeping a virus without a cure under check in a school environment is a far bigger challenge than doing the same thing in offices, etc, where only adults are involved and the general level of maturity is much higher. No doubt teachers as well as parents understand how students are supposed to behave when they are at school, but making children especially the younger ones realise the sensitivity of the matter and follow all the instructions to the letter is another matter altogether. On the very first day of reopening, with the lower classes up to class eight yet to commence, an unusually high number of schools were found to be in default of the SOPs. The government to its credit moved swiftly and took the necessary action of sealing these institutions.

There is also the fact that children, while vulnerable to the virus are still mostly carriers of it, which exposes teachers and working staff in schools and parents and grandparents inside homes to infection. That is why it is ultimately the responsibility of individual schools to make sure that all SOPs are followed at all times. And if they must shuffle their schedule, and scatter the classes or hold them in shifts, to make sure that necessary safety protocols are put in place then so be it. Students have suffered long enough because of the six-month disruption to their formal education. The luckier ones have been able to make do with online classes, though this innovation has not come without its own fair share of problems. But a very large majority has just been sitting in their homes and waiting for good times to return. That is why the government's decision to reopen schools, especially now that pretty much everything else is up and running already, makes a lot of sense. The virus will have a cure one day, and then a lot of the jobs lost now will come back, but when children miss a very crucial part of their education it impacts their whole lives. And since this virus is a global phenomenon, this disruption alone could hurt a whole generation.

Pakistan already suffers from very high illiteracy, which directly feeds the high poverty rate. That is why whatever can be done, within the limits of safety of course, to keep as many children inside schools as much of the time as possible must be done. Yet right now that would require ensuring the highest safety standards. Or all the good that has so far been done will be undone very quickly. Not only will a lot of people fall ill and spread panic as medical facilities come under pressure once again, but the country or at least parts of it would have to be locked down also. And that would deliver the kiss of death to the economy because of reasons that every Pakistani understands by now.

That is why it is something of a concern that not all schools have followed the kind of safety procedures that are required after the reopening. This issue must be addressed at once. Not only must there be sprays and temperature checks at the gate, but pupils must be encouraged to keep a safe distance from others and wash their hands frequently. Spot checks, as done on the first day of reopening, should be continued with increasing numbers to make sure that all instructions are being followed. We have suffered once, just after Ramazan and Eid earlier in the year, because a lot of people just didn't care to follow safety rules and ended up spreading the virus. Since then, though, we have done very well and emerged as one of the seven countries that, according to the WHO, have managed Covid-19 successfully. It would be a shame if the negligence of a few school administrations threatens to reverse all of the gains. A lot of work has gone into bringing Pakistan where it is today and everybody must play their part in making sure we keep moving in the right direction.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020