Catholic University plans home classes due to coronavirus

The Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA) has started preparations for teaching students from home in case the coronavirus hits Kenya.

The university has directed its lecturers to develop online teaching modules for all courses being offered in the current semester in preparation for possible outbreak of the Covid-19 that has claimed over 3,800 lives globally.

Nine African countries have confirmed cases of the virus, with Togo and Cameroon the latest entrants on the list.

“To prepare for the possible need, I hereby direct all teaching staff to develop oline teaching modules for all the units they are teaching this semester so that they can be uploaded to the university academic online platform,” CUEA vice-chancellor Stephen Mbugua Ngari said in a notice.

The lecturers have less than two weeks to beat the March 20 deadline for submitting the online teaching material.

“The modules are to be submitted in soft copy to the In-Charge, Blended Programmes section of the university,” said Prof Ngari.

Dozens of companies across the globe have ordered staff to work from home to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Kenya is yet to confirm a single case of the disease despite numerous false alarms.

The country has been on high alert over the possible outbreak of the deadly disease.

This has triggered a surge in demand for protective masks, with Kenya’s sole factory and distributors scrambling to fill orders from hospitals and pharmacies.

The price of protective masks has tripled over the past month on increased demand from local pharmacies and hospitals as well as dealers exporting the gear following the coronavirus outbreak.

Kenya has since banned export of respirator masks following the outbreak of the disease.

In Africa, Egypt, Algeria, Nigeria, Morocco, Senegal, Tunisia and South Africa have confirmed cases of the virus.

The virus, which spreads through droplets from coughs and sneezes, has infected over 110,000 people globally.