By Onome Oghenetega
Nigeria’s COVID-19 epicentre, Lagos State, has ordered tertiary institutions in the state to reopen full academic activities next month September 14.
This is coming five months after outbreak of the dreaded coronavirus forced the Nigerian Government to order closure of schools across the country including Lagos to curb the spread of the virus.
The state governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, gave the order on Saturday while briefing journalists on the development in Lagos.
Lagos has so far recorded 18,083 COVID-19 infections cases. Of this number 15,228 patients have been discharged while 2,653 cases are currently on admission.
202 patients have died of the virus in the state.
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Recall that Lagos recorded the country’s index case in February.
But briefing journalists on Saturday, Governor Sanwo-Olu said the decision was based on the flattening of the number of COVID-19 cases in the state.
“I am pleased to announce that our tertiary institutions will be allowed to reopen from September 14, 2020, all our tertiary institutions.”
He stated that at the end of the ongoing WASSCE, primary and secondary schools in the state would also resume academic activities beginning from September 21, 2020.
He added, “As regards our primary and secondary schools, we are working towards reopening them around the 21st of September 2020. This position is not cast in stone and subject to a review of our ongoing monitoring and procedures from the Ministry of Health.
“Remember that we said that the virus will peak and we will flatten the curve in the month of August. From what we have seen, it appears we have flattened the curve. In the last two weeks, we have continued to see a drop in the positivity that we have encountered in the state.”
