The World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF urged the inclusion of teachers and school staff in the priority groups for COVID-19 vaccinations.

A joint statement issued by the two UN agencies said that essential measures to ensure that schools remain open throughout the pandemic include giving teachers and other school staff the COVID-19 vaccine.

The statement added that the request should be implemented "while ensuring that the most vulnerable populations are vaccinated."

With schools reopening after the summer break, fears of disrupting education again are on everyone’s mind notably with the highly contagious Delta Variant spreading. Hence it has become critical to equip educational institutions with the necessary tools to protect both staff and students.

WHO Director-General for Europe Hans Kluge confirmed that "the pandemic was behind the most disastrous disruption of education in history."

Back To School Recommendations

Both organizations listed several measures as important in combatting the spread of COVID-19 in schools:

-Vaccinating children above 12 with health problems.

-Improving ventilation 

-Reducing the number of students in each classroom

-Conducting periodic PCR tests for students and staff

-Monitoring social distancing

Current COVID Tally

In the latest supplied data, the Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center revealed that the number of deaths due to COVID-19 in the world exceeded 4.5 million. 

The number of recorded infections in the world exceeds 216 million.