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Conrad Mupesa Herald Correspondent
THE Zimbabwe Open University (ZOU) has put in place measures to guarantee the safety of its staff members and students who are writing their end of semester examinations at all its regional centres.
The institution said it was working towards shifting its Mashonaland West examination centre from Chinhoyi Training Centre to another venue after students expressed concern over sharing the same facility with quarantined returnees.
When The Herald visited Chinhoyi Training Centre on Friday, which is also the provincial quarantine centre for returning residents, strict adherence to World Health Organisation (WHO) lockdown regulations was being observed. Areas being used by candidates and those in quarantine were clearly demarcated.
The students said although the institution had put in place safety measures to ensure they were not exposed to Covid-19, the risk of contracting the disease was still high.
ZOU’s acting director of communications, marketing and public relations, Mr Stewart Mandiwanza, confirmed plans to move the regional examination centre.
“We will be moving our Mashonaland West regional examination centre to probably one of the local schools in Chinhoyi. We are still working with the acting regional director and the Ministry of Health and Child Care on the way forward.
“Mashonaland West is the only region that is going to shift its examination centre out of all the 10 centres.”
Mr Mandiwanza said other regions who used campuses that were designated as quarantine centres looked for alternative centres before examinations.
“Harare region, which used to administer its examinations at Belvedere Teachers College is using City Sports Centre,” he said.
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