If restrictions are imposed to reduce or control transmission, schools should be the last places to close and the first to reopen with appropriate infection prevention measures’, according to regional director of the health entity, Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge.

The widespread closing of schools last year, which interrupted the education of millions of children and adolescents, did more harm than good, especially for the mental and social well-being of children, Kugle added, quoted by European press.

The director of WHO Europe urged not to repeat the same mistakes and argued that with adequate prevention and response measures infections can be avoided.

Rather than closing schools, WHO recommended a ‘whole society approach to reducing transmission through a wide range of measures’, depending on the level of transmission.

That perspective includes school settings where physical distancing, frequent hand cleaning, the use of masks, adequate ventilation in classrooms, and increased access to diagnosis tests are important.

WHO also recommended the use of Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine for young people aged 12 to 17 years.

To date, Europe totals 76 million cases of Covid-19 and 1.4 million deaths from the pandemic.

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