The Kogi State Government has approved January 18 for the reopening of public and private schools in the state.
The State government urged all relevant stakeholders to strictly comply with the COVID-19 protocols.
This was made known by the Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Wemi Jones, during a news briefing in Lokoja.
Jones reiterated that all schools should resume on January 18 to continue the first term of the 2020/2021 academic session.
”It has become imperative for me to address the press to clear the air, so as to prevent confusion on account of school resumption in Kogi.
”I will like to state unequivocally that the resumption date for all schools in Kogi remains January 18, 2021.
”This applies to both public and private primary and secondary schools, and tertiary institutions of learning in the state,” he said.
The commissioner said his ministry had revised the school calendar to accommodate and make up for the two-week break extension due to the lockdown that was prompted by the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said the schools were initially scheduled to resume on January 4 for the continuation of the first term but that it was extended by two weeks due to the hardships caused by the pandemic and the lockdown.
He said Gov. Yahaya Bello had directed the ministry to comply with the two-week break extension in the state as advised by the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19.
“The governor, thereafter, clearly stated that the state would not jeopardise the education of our children by extending school resumption beyond January 18, 2021.
”So, schools must resume in Kogi across all levels: primary, secondary and tertiary for both private and public schools, on January 18,” Jones said.
