Faizel Patel – 23/07/2020
President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced that all public schools will be closed for 4 weeks.
The President was addressing the nation on Thursday on developments in South Africa’s risk-adjusted strategy to manage the spread of COVID-19.
Ramaphosa says he is aware that the closure of schools will disappoint many learners who want to be back at school and may cause inconvenience and difficulty for many families who need to make alternative childcare arrangements.
“Taking into account the views of the various stakeholders and expert bodies, Cabinet has decided that all public schools should take a break for the next four weeks. This means that schools will be closed from 27 July and will re-open on 24 August.”
Ramaphosa however says there are exceptions.
“Grade 12 learners and teachers will only take a one-week break, returning to school on 3 August. Grade 7 learners will take a two-week break, returning to school on 10 August.”
Ramaphosa says specific arrangements will be made for different categories of special schools.
“As a result of the disruptions caused by the pandemic, the current academic year will be extended beyond the end of 2020.”
He says Cabinet have taken a deliberately cautious approach to keep schools closed during a period when the country is expected to experience its greatest increase in infections.
Ramaphosa says Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga will provide details on the management of the remainder of the school year.
0 Comments