China’s financial hub Shanghai said on Sunday it would reopen all schools including kindergartens, and primary and middle schools on Sept. 1 after months of COVID-19 closures.
The city will require all teachers and students to takenucleic acid tests for the coronavirus every day before leavingcampus, the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission said.
It also called for teachers and students to carry out a14-day “self health management” within the city ahead of theschool reopening, the commission said in a statement.
Shanghai shut all schools in mid-March before the city’stwo-month lockdown to combat its worst COVID outbreak in Apriland May.
It allowed some students of high school and middle school toreturn to classrooms in June while most of the rest continuedhome study for the remainder of the semester.
The announcement on schools reopening brings great relief tomany residents but fears about COVID lockdowns continue topersist, as China vows to stick to its dynamic zero policy whichrequires all positive cases and their close contacts to undergoquarantine.
On Saturday, videos circulating on Chinese social mediashowed customers pushing past security guards and running out ofan IKEA mall in central Shanghai in panic as an announcementblared over its sound system saying the mall was being lockeddown due to COVID contact tracing.
Reuters was not able to independently verify theauthenticity of the videos but IKEA customer service said onSunday the mall was shut due to COVID curbs. IKEA did notimmediately respond to a request for further comment.
Shanghai, the most populous in China, reported five newlocal infections of COVID, all asymptomatic, for Saturday, while2,467 domestically transmitted cases were reported nationwide.
It has extended its weekly COVID-19 test requirement andextended free testing until the end of September in a bid tokeep the virus in check, authorities announced on Saturday.
The southern province of Hainan is now China’s worst hitregion, with 494 symptomatic cases and 846 asymptomatic casesreported for Saturday.
Chinese Vice Premier Sun Chunlan urged Hainan to achievezero cases at the community level as soon as possible when sheinspected several places on the island, including the SanyaPhoenix International Airport on Saturday, state media reported.
