KIGALI, Jul 12 (NNN-IRIN) – Students being treated for COVID-19 under home-based care in Rwanda, are to sit for their national examinations under strict health protocols, the country’s education ministry, said.
All examination centres will set up a separate examination room, which will be disinfected every day, for these students, the ministry said, in guidelines published yesterday.
A total of 452,053 candidates across the country are expected to sit for their national examinations, including written and practical exams, from Jun to Jul, according to the National Examination and School Inspection Authority.
The first written exams, the three-day primary level examinations, start today, Jul 12, followed by ordinary level ones and others.
Students under home-based care shall be accompanied by parents or responsible relatives, when coming from and going back home, and those who “don’t feel well enough” will not be allowed to sit for the examinations, the ministry said.
The nearest health facilities are required to provide face masks, hand sanitizers, gloves and a medical worker, at examination centres, according to the guidelines.
The envelopes containing examination answer sheets will not be opened until 10 days later, when “there is no risk of contamination,” the ministry said.
Patients eligible for home-based care include those who are asymptomatic and below the age of 65 years, without other long-lasting health complications, Rwanda’s health ministry said last Oct.
As of yesterday, the central African country recorded 48,244 COVID-19 cases, 32,523 recoveries and 560 deaths, according to the health ministry.
