Time for innovation regarding 2020 WASSCE impasse

At the last count over 183 countries according to John Hopkins University, have been affected in one way or the other by the CoronaVirus pandemic with global infection rates passing 13,589,273.

Of this number 585,906 deaths were recorded between March and July 16, and though this seems a drop in the ocean when compared to the over 7 billion world population, Covid-19’s impact on the world economy has been devastating.

The global economy has been in lockdown mode leading to national governments all over the world pumping in over 8 trillion USD to keep their economies afloat.

This stems from the fact that there is currently no known cure for Covid-19 other than treatment management of those infected by the virus resulting in health-care facilities in many countries stretched to breaking point.

There are over 120 researches worldwide for a Covid-19 vaccine, but the only option open to national governments have been to impose lockdown, social distancing, intense testing and contact tracing to slow infection.

This has produced two main types of responses across the world, countries with the resolve to adhere strictly to lockdown, social distancing, intensive testing and contact tracing and those countries that cannot.

China, Vietnam, Taiwan, South Korea, Iceland, Finland, New Zealand fall into the first group while countries like Nigeria, Iran, South Africa, Brazil, United States of America fall into the second group.

Much of the countries in Europe, North Africa and Middle East, Asia, Caribbean,Oceania,Africa fall in between these two extreme responses with varying degrees of impact.

The key difference has been the resolve of national governments of these countries to impose lockdown, and enforce social distancing, intense testing and contact tracing for Covid-19 infections.

The national leaders of these countries that showed resolved in turn got the willing support and endorsement of the citizens, and as the principle goes, when leaders lead the people will willingly offer themselves.

The reverse has been the case in Nigeria where the six weeks lockdown first of all was not national, and secondly was observed more in breach than in compliance and Nigerians are today reaping the consequences.

Worse, the accompanying intense testing for Covid-19 that should have been conducted during the lockdown and more importantly after the lockdown was lifted, has been most pitiable.

With a population of 200 million citizens, Nigeria is currently not conducting up to 1500 Covid-19 tests a day nationwide, and we still have states like Kogi and Cross Rivers that are in denial regarding Covid-19.

Contact tracing for purposes of tracking and quarantining those who may have come in contact with infected Covid-19 persons on the other hand has been a mirage as many give fake addresses to avoid quarantine.

The result is that unlike the United Kingdom which is carrying out 230,000 tests daily and has now been able to ease off lockdown measures, Nigeria has only conducted 202,097 tests in four and a half months.

Even the United States with the highest Covid-19 infection rate in the world, 3,536,658 resulting in 137,897 deaths, has been conducting close to over 400,000 Covid-19 tests a day.

All we know in Nigeria is that mortuaries are filled to the brim, doctors are complaining about more deaths than normal, and grave diggers are digging more graves in burial grounds than usual.

This is the environment in which West Africa Examination Council wants to conduct West Africa Secondary School Certificate Examination for 1,500,000 Nigerian secondary school students between August and September.

If the Federal Executive Council and State Executive Councils across the country are holding virtual council meetings, why should our children be the ones exposed physically to Covid-19?

If South West Education Commissioners and the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria can meet virtually to declare that South West States are considering reopening for WASSCE, why should our children be the ones exposed physically to Covid-19?

If the President of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools, Yomi Odubela, is holding a virtual meeting to announce that private schools are Covid-19 ready for WASSCE, why should our children be the ones exposed physically to Covid-19?

If the private school proprietors across Nigeria can be Covid-19 compliant to reopen for WASCE in August and September, who takes responsibility for government owned schools across the 774 Local Governments of Nigeria knowing the state of public education?

There are over 100 Federal Government Colleges across Nigeria that are all full boarding schools, and having student populations drawn from other parts of Nigeria, who takes Covid-19 responsibility for these students?

Many private secondary schools students have been receiving support online and some state governments are doing so too and also on electronic media but this has not been widespread, so what happens to students who have not received any support teaching since March?

Who also takes responsibility for the teachers, support staff, WAEC invigilating officials, transport and logistic support personnel distributing exam questions and collecting examination answers, will they be tested for Covid-19 regularly during this WASSCE?

During this crucial period when Covid-19 infection is yet to peak in Nigeria, who takes responsibility for ensuring these 1,500,000 Nigerian school children are protected against Covid-19 in their commute between their homes and the examination centers?

And while I won’t join issues with the National Parents Teachers Association of Nigeria declaration of commitment to ensure that the returning students are protected from Covid-19, are the parents of these children really prepared to put their children in harms way for the sake of WASSCE?

If these parents are really prepared to put their children in harms way for the sake of WASSCE then this explains why the skepticism and sometimes downright unbelief about the existence of Covid-19 is so prevalent across Nigeria, and this also explains why infections are running rampant.

As for those children who see nothing but their participation in WASSCE as their sole definers choosing to turn blind eyes to the ravages of Covid-19, ignoring the global reality that stares all in the face is not the solution.

Adamu Adamu, the Minister of Education has expressed a strong desire not to loose any of these students to Covid-19 because of 2020 WASSCE, I think this is commendable and the starting point for finding innovative solutions for WASSCE that do not entail gambling with the lives of our children.

We may also come to find out that the impasse over 2020 WASSCE is the least of Nigeria’s problem and that there has to be an entire rethink of school education and accompanying curriculum and teacher education, especially as Covid-19 intends to hang around for a very long period of time.