BY the end of next week the country should be in a position for broader testing of COVID-19 at the National Referral Hospital (NRH).
This assurance was echoed by the Secretary to Prime Minister Doctor Jimmy Rogers during a talkback show over the national broadcaster on Sunday 3rd May 2020.
Dr. Rogers said that since the formation of the oversight committee around four months ago, a lot of things have happened on the COVID-19 front.
The oversight committee’s core responsibility is to advise the government on what actions to take in the fight against COVID-19.
He said that globally, infections have risen dramatically and decimating huge chunks of the global population.
Statistics had it that globally, infections are in the range of 3.5 million.
“The good news is that the rest of the Pacific is still COVID-19 free besides French Polynesia, Fiji, New Caledonia and Papua New Guinea that have registered positive cases,” the Secretary to Prime Minister said.
Mr. Rogers said that the country’s early preparation to prevent the virus from entering our borders has been working.
“With that, I would like to thank the people of Solomon Islands especially those in the declared emergency zones for your cooperation,” Dr. Rogers said.
He further updated that detail of actions and plans will be delivered through relevant sectors.
He assured that the health sector will have some capacity to test COVID-19 as of the middle of this week.
The Secretary stressed that by the end of next week the country should be in a position for broader testing.
He added that by the third week of this month the country should be ready to test for COVID-19 using the two different machines now available at our disposal.
On Education, some schools have started classes as of last week and the rest should have started yesterday.
“There are plans now to also consider opening up schools on Guadalcanal from Foxwood in the east and perhaps Aruligo in the west with the exception of high schools which are likely to open as of next week,” Dr Rogers said.
“Similarly, schools in the Western Province especially Noro, Gizo, and Munda will also be considered for resumption apart from Goldie College,” he added.
However, he cautioned that these arrangements are yet to be finalized and confirmed and school authorities, students, and teachers are urged to listen out for further details early next week.
He added that the full assessment report of emergency zone schools will also be ready early next week and that will then help to determine the opening up of schools in the emergency zones.
“Next week will be a busy one for education and as much as you want to see your children back at school, the government is doing its best to make it happen whilst at the same time cautious of the threats posed by COVID-19,” he mentioned.
Dr. Rogers also mentioned that there are ongoing discussions regarding the possibility of a limited reopening of businesses and that will also be featured during the course of the week.
By SAMSON SADE
