Hundreds of primary schools located in rural areas of Uruguay have reopened amid the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic. Schools that have reopened were disinfected and will comply with restrictions imposed to combat the spread of the virus such as rules for physical distancing. Schools will temporarily be open 3 days a week for a maximum of 4 hours a day and attendance is not mandatory so that parents and guardians of students will be able to decide whether or not to send the children back to school.

Public schools were closed about 5 weeks ago, and while some people including teachers have opposed the reopening of schools due to fear that Covid-19 cases could surge, several government officials argued that students in rural areas were the most at-risk nationwide in losing out on education because they are less likely to have devices that could connect to the internet, and thus would not be able to participate in remote learning. According to local media outlets, rural schools were chosen to reopen first since they have a comparatively low number of students and the risk of having large gatherings would therefore be minimized.

The Ministry of Public Health of Uruguay along with the John Hopkins University of the United States of America estimate that Uruguay currently has over 530 confirmed cases of the Covid-19 coronavirus alongside 11 Covid-19-related deaths. So far, just over 300 people have been marked as recovered.

Web link to the Ministry of Public Health of Uruguay: https://www.gub.uy/ministerio-salud-publica/  

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