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Africa Educates Her Campaign-Angola. Day 17

Schools have been closed since early March for 15 million students. The African continent has taken the first tentative steps out of its Covid-19 measures but there is uncertainty about when classrooms will be able to reopen safely. That has led to fears of increased numbers of girls dropping out of education. 

For this reason we are running this amazing campaign in order to get girls back to school. 

Today we have Ivete José in our program. We found her in the street, it was nice to talk to her. She will share with us her experiences during lock-down.

Ivete is a 9-year-old girl. She says that coronavirus affected her negatively. She misses school, classmates and teacher.

Despite the circumstances, she doesn't give up. In her free time she solves the fascicle exercises that the school is offering for students to study at home.

According to her, the government and education agents must create strict biosecurity measures, control social distancing, divide the class into small groups, put buckets of water for hand washing. Victoria told us that her classroom is composed of 60 students, at this time the teachers must compulsorily divide the class into small groups.

 "When girls are in school, they are busy and their minds are doing something. But this pandemic has delayed the girls studying and acquiring knowledge."

Distribution of school material

What schools can do?

To stay safe, there are a number of steps schools should take to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. They include:

Physical distancing. The goal for students and adults is to stay at least 6 feet apart to help prevent the spread of the virus. However, research has found that spacing desks at least 3 feet apart and avoiding close contact may have similar benefits--especially if students wear cloth face coverings and do not have symptoms of illness. Teachers and staff should stay 6 feet apart from other adults and from students when possible. Teachers and staff should also wear cloth face coverings, limit in-person meetings with other adults and avoid areas such as staff lounges.

When possible, schools should use outdoor spaces and unused spaces for instruction and meals to help with distancing. For example, activities like singing, band and exercising are safest outdoors and spread out.

Classroom changes. To help limit student interaction outside the classroom, schools should consider:

• Having teachers move between classrooms, rather than having students fill the hallways during passing periods.

• Allowing students to eat lunches at their desks or in small groups outdoors instead of in crowded lunchrooms.

• Leaving classroom doors open to help reduce high touch surfaces such as doorknobs.

Testing & temperature checks. The CDC currently does not recommend COVID testing of students and staff​. Testing only shows whether a person is infected at that specific moment in time and may not be useful in preventing outbreaks in school communities. Taking students' temperatures at school may also not be feasible, but you can monitor your children's health at home and keep them home if they are not feeling well. Schools should frequently remind students, teachers, and staff to stay home if they have a fever of 100.4 degrees F or greater or have any signs of illness.

Why students should go back to school–when it​ is safe

​Schools provide more than just academics to children and adolescents. In addition to reading, writing and math, students learn social and emotional skills, get exercise, and have access to mental health support and other services that cannot be provided with online learning. For many children and adolescents, schools are safe places to be while parents or guardians are working. For many families, schools are where kids get healthy meals, access to the internet and other vital services.

Mastercard Foundation Arizona State University Scholars Program 2021 for young Africans (Fully Funded to Phoenix, Arizona USA)

 Do not miss this opportunity! Apply now

Application Deadline: 19 October 2020

Click here to apply: https://bit.ly/33VaqYD

In partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, Arizona State University will provide graduate scholarships to train 25 Mastercard Foundation alumni at the Master’s level for various programs over the next 5 years (2021 - 2025). This scholarship program is situated within EdPlus, a central enterprise unit for ASU, focused on the design and scalable delivery of digital teaching and learning models to increase student success and reduce barriers to achievement in higher education.

This is a fully immersive and traditional on-campus 2-year Master’s program with a focus on training EdTech experts for Africa. While classes are in session, Scholars will work part-time with the Baobab team to gain hands-on experience implementing the strategic objectives of the Baobab Platform. The Baobab Platform consists of the implementation of an online learning community that serves over 8,000 users and is expanding to support 100,000 young Africans globally over the next five years. Between the first and second year, Scholars will be supported to participate in a 2-month Africa-based internship that aligns with their program of study.

Benefits

Costs incurred for visa application processing

Costs incurred for English language tests

Costs incurred for GRE or other equivalent exams

Airfare to and from Phoenix, Arizona

Full tuition, books and fees

Housing

Participation in Scholarship programming

African Union Youth Envoy Youth Silencing the Gun Award 2020 for young peacebuilders in Africa ( up to $5,000 grant)

 Do not miss this opportunity!

Application Deadline: 20 October 2020 

Click: https://bit.ly/2FWSvZJ

The Youth Silencing the Guns Award was created by the AU Office of the Youth Envoy to celebrate, recognize and support young Africans behind impactful peacebuilding initiatives that are building a culture of peace. A total of Six Awards will be issued six categories

The award seeks to:

Identify six young peacebuilders at the forefront of impactful Silencing the Guns initiatives.

Raise awareness of and celebrate their initiatives

Directly support their initiatives with grants of $ 2000 up to $ 5,000

Award Winners will receive:

Recognition for their work

$ 2000 up to $ 5,000 grant funding to support their existing peacebuilding projects

Featured at the African Union and partners platforms

Airlines push for coronavirus tests before international flights

Global airlines are calling for airport coronavirus tests for all departing international passengers to replace the quarantines they blame for exacerbating the travel slump.

Rapid and affordable antigen tests that look for pieces of the coronavirus in swab samples from people's noses and throats - and that can be administered by non-medical staff - are expected to become available in the “coming weeks” and should be rolled out under globally agreed standards, the head of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said during an online media briefing.

“We don’t see any alternative solution that would be less challenging or more effective,” IATA Director General Alexandre de Juniac said.

Airlines hammered by the coronavirus pandemic are pressing governments to embrace alternatives to blanket travel restrictions that are still hampering a traffic recovery - and that are now tightening again in Europe amid resurgent case numbers.

With rapid antigen tests becoming available for as little as $ 7 each, by Juniac said, airlines will push for their use to be endorsed by the International Civil Aviation Organization, the United Nations agency that oversees global aviation rules.

IATA believes production could be quickly increased to millions per day and the tests phased in between late October and the end of the year, “helping to save a part of the winter season”, by Juniac told Reuters television.

A global agreement is needed to ensure predeparture test results are uniformly accepted by the destination country, he said, adding, “It will also boost passenger confidence that everybody on the aircraft has been tested.”

Evolving position

The airlines ’position has evolved alongside testing technology. IATA argued a month ago for new rules to recognize laboratory-based polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests - which also look for virus fragments - conducted 48 hours before departure.

Last-minute airport screening is more effective because it “seals off the system” against forged certificates or infections contracted just before travel, by Juniac said on Tuesday.

Antigen tests are faster but less sensitive and therefore slightly more likely to miss positive cases than the PCR alternatives, although the accuracy gap has narrowed.

Among companies marketing the new tests, German diagnostics specialist Qiagen said earlier this month that it planned to launch a COVID-19 antigen test that provided results in 15 minutes and could be deployed in airports or stadiums.

Vietnam Police Seize More Than 320,000 Used Condoms

 Footage showed dozens of bags that together weighed 360kg (794lbs) in a warehouse that was recently raided in the southern Binh Duong province.

 A woman, who was believed to be the owner of the warehouse, was arrested.

The condoms were reportedly washed, reshaped with wooden dildos and then repackaged before being resold. 

The arrested woman said she was paid $0.17 (£0.13) per kilogram for the condoms, according to Vietnam’s state broadcaster VTV. 

It is unclear how many such condoms have already been resold on the market.

Covid-19: 112 new infections and 30 recoveries reported

  At least 112 new positive cases of covid-19 have been detected in Angola in the last 24 hours, as well as three deaths and 30 recoveries.

SECRETARY OF STATE FRANCO MUFINDA,

Angolan, Libyan diplomats discuss elections in African Union

 Addis Ababa - Angolan permanent representative to the African Union Francisco da Cruz and his Libyan counterpart Guma Amer discussed Wednesday the issues related to the election of senior leaders in the African Union Commission (AUC), set between January and February 2021.

ANGOLAN AMBASSADOR TO ETHIOPIA ( R) FRANCISCO DA CRUZ POSES WITH LIBYAN COUNTERPART

Angola's state secondary schools authorised to charge fees

 State-owned second cycle schools in Angola have been authorised to charge fees and emoluments in order to ensure the self-sustainability of these education institutions.

The information is expressed in Presidential Order 129/20, stating that the amount is still to defined.

The new measure is justified by the fact that the "school revenues are part of an important alternative financing portion for public secondary education institutions", stressed these legal intrument.

The Government believes that the collection of fees and emoluments will increase the financial resources, necessary for the functioning of the schools in this teaching subsystem.

The Presidential Order states the collection must be secured by the Ministries of Education and Finance, but the source did not reveal when the services would start being implemented.

It is up to the two Ministerial Departments (Education and Finance) to approving and defining these values.

A source close to Education Ministry, requiring anonymity, told Angop that proposals are being analysed with the Ministry of Finance to determine the values ??of fees and emoluments to be charged, in exchange for the services provided by secondary education institutions.

In September of 2019, the Angolan authorities decided to suspend the collection of  fees in public educational institutions in Angola, due to the "non-existence" of a legal diploma for that purpose.