Officials divided over school swine flu closures

Bahrain’s decision to close all schools in a bid to prevent the spread of swine flu has divided opinions of senior health and education officials.

Health officials told the Gulf Daily News they were against the decision, which went against World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendations.

All secondary schools will be closed in the kingdom until October 4, intermediate schools until October 11 and nurseries and special needs centres until November 1.

According to the paper, the decision was made to “safeguard the return of pupils to classes, particularly vulnerable groups such as young children and to alleviate pressure on the country's health services.”

An official, who did not want to be named, told the paper: "We were asked about our suggestions and most were of the opinion that school closures were not an option.

"However, there were others who said it was better to be safe than sorry and the extension of the break was proper."

"There will still be cases after schools re-open so what do we do then? This is going to result in serious disruptions," they added.

Hussein Al Gezairy, WHO Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office director, has previously criticised Bahrain's decision to delay the re-opening of schools, saying the measures were "unnecessary and not recommended".

READERS' COMMENTS

MORE FROM ARABIANBUSINESS.COM