SowetanLive reports that a total of 23 staff members from SA’s 50 Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges, and four from community education colleges, died of Covid-related complications between 15 December and 11 January.
Up until 13 November last year, 48 staff members and 10 students from the country’s 26 universities also died after contracting the virus. These figures were released by the minister of higher education, science and innovation, Blade Nzimande, on Monday at a briefing on plans for the reopening of the post-school education and training sector. He said there were 146 staff infections at TVET colleges and 123 recoveries, and 98 infections and 85 recoveries at the community education colleges. His department will be receiving updated reports on Covid-19 infections and fatalities at higher education institutions on 20 January, but Nzimande made it clear that “if we identify that there is a rapid increase in particularly institutions or campuses of infections, we will close those institutions.” Nzimande reported that 10 universities had completed teaching and learning, including exams, for the 2020 academic year. The remaining 16 are completing the academic year for 2020 at different times depending on their own academic timetable, but they will complete it between now and March. The minister urged all institutions to communicate their detailed programme with all stakeholders, particularly with prospective students, parents and workers “so that they remain informed at all times on the rollout of the institutional programme for proper decision-making”.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Prega Govender at TimesLIVE
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