Second academic semester to start sans COVID restrictions

AMMAN — The second academic semester is scheduled to begin on February 5, Education Ministry Spokesperson Ahmad Masaafah said on Sunday.

The necessary procedures for the start of the academic year have been set, and given the stability across the country, there will be no need for any preventative measures, Masaafah said.

“Currently there are around 2.2 million students enrolled in the Kingdom’s public and private schools who will be returning to their classrooms without any additional health measures amid global concerns over the ‘Kraken’ [XBB1.5] variant,” the spokesperson told The Jordan Times.

Jordanian education expert Ayesh Nawaysa told The Jordan Times that “promoting a culture of health in educational institutions, and promoting the value of mitigation measures, should be part of the educational process,” adding that as of now, “there are no public health justifications” for any COVID-related interventions.

Nawaysa noted that the Ministry of Health and other governmental institutions have acquired experience in dealing with unusual circumstances or challenges. 

Jordanian physician Mahmoud Bilal told The Jordan Times that “it is important to follow precautionary and safety measures,” regardless of the lack of recorded cases.

“The Omicron subvariant known as Kraken has been deemed by the WHO to have a large growth advantage compared with previous variants,” the doctor said. 

However, “prevention is better than cure”, he added.

On January 13, the WHO updated its guidelines on wearing masks in public settings, COVID-19 treatments and clinical management of the virus.

 “The WHO continues to recommend the use of masks by the public in specific situations, regardless of the local epidemiological situation,” according to the WHO website.

In Jordan, no cases of the new Omicron sublineage XBB.1.5 have been detected. Additionally, the cumulative number of infection cases has dropped significantly.

Um Ghazi, a mother of three, said that she is not currently worried because the epidemiological situation in Jordan is stable, but she will tell her three children to start wearing masks to school, hoping that this sub-variant does not become the dominant strain like in other countries.

“I am not stressed out. I do regular COVID test for my kids, so I think there is nothing to worry about,” she told The Jordan Times.