One day after six teachers of Region One (Barima-Waini) tested positive for the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), it was revealed that a total of 11 teachers in the area are positive.
An aerial view of Santa Rosa, Moruca, Region One
An official statement from the Education Ministry revealed that all of the 11 teachers are from the Santa Rosa Primary School, Moruca sub-district, Region One. A few weeks ago, one teacher from the region had also contracted the disease. It is unclear whether the individual was included in the statistics.
A health worker fumigating a house in Santa Rosa (Indigenous Peoples Affairs Ministry photo)
They would have volunteered on May 25 to distribute hampers to parents in the community and it is believed that this is where the contraction occurred. The remaining 26 teachers from the school were asked to self-quarantine.
The Ministry also sought to clarify that schools in Region One were never opened on June 8 and claimed the affected teachers “never came into contact with neither children nor teachers from that school or any other school.” Schools throughout the region were closed on March 16. When contacted by Guyana Times, President of the Guyana Teachers Union Mark Lyte refused to comment on the issue. Calls to General Secretary of the Union, Coretta McDonald went unanswered.
Community transmission
Meanwhile, with the surge in cases among the teaching fraternity and a regional contraction rate of 23 cases, the Regional Health Officer (RHO) has since labelled the situation as a “community transmission”. As a result, there will be a community lockdown for the next two weeks to curb the spread of the virus. This lockdown includes all school activities being cancelled.
On the issue of upcoming examinations, the Education Ministry has since said that alternative measures are being undertaken to keep students abreast, while claiming that their safety is being addressed. Additionally, it stated that the situation will be closely monitored.
The area has 359 Grade Six students preparing for the National Grade Six Assessment and 214 for CXC.
Zeroing in on the matter, former Opposition Member of Parliament, Africo Selman on Friday told Guyana Times that the hinterland communities need greater resources to effectively continue educational activities in a safe manner.
She further contended that the same guidelines cannot work for schools on the coastland and hinterland, since the latter is greatly disenfranchised due to geographical location and internet access.
“It is extremely alarming that the Ministry of Education has failed to identify the measures the officials intended to implement to protect the teachers and children of Regions One (Barima-Waini), Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), Eight (Potaro-Siparuni) and Nine (Upper Takautu-Upper Essequibo). They cannot use the same measures for all the regions given the demographics of Guyana,” Selman explained.
