All provincial education ministers will meet on March 24 to decide about the reopening or further closure of educational institutions, Federal Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood said on Sunday.
The participants of the meeting will look at the COVID-19 trends in Pakistan and decide accordingly.
Shafqat Mahmood took to Twitter and said, “All education/health ministers will meet Wednesday, March 24, at the National Command and Control Centre (NCOC) to take a decision regarding opening or further closure of educational institutions,” the minister wrote.
In the last 24 hours, 3,669 people tested positive for COVID-19 in Pakistan while 20 lost their lives, according to the latest statistics released by NCOC. Most casualties were seen in the province of Punjab followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
As of March 22, the total active COVID-19 cases in Pakistan stand at 33,070.
While speaking at a ceremony in Lahore Chambers of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) on Monday, Shafqat Mehmood said that the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) believed that there’s a high risk of COVID-19 in schools.
“NCOC believed that there’s a high risk of COVID-19 spread in schools. 50 million children are linked with education and if someone getsts infected, the disease would spread.”
Mahmood said that we will try to keep the schools open in areas where the COVID-19 situation is better, however the final decision will be taken after the meeting on 24.
