The University of South Africa (Unisa) has outlined some of it its rules and protocols regarding COVID-19 as the pandemic continues in the country and the academic year truly kicks off.
Below are the six rules of compliance set out by Unisa which applies to employees, students and visitors. Employees include permanent staff as well as temporary and fixed staff. The visitors section also applies to contractors so it’s rather set in stone that anyone that wants to interface with the school in person needs to follow these guidelines:
- If you are sick or have COVID-19 symptoms do not come to work and report to your Line Manager
- All employees, students and visitors to UNISA premises must comply with daily screening requirements before entering or accessing any of the UNISA premises.You may not refuse screening
- All employees, students and visitors to UNISA premises must cooperate with Protection Services Personnel during the screening process at the entrances
- All employees, students and visitors to UNISA premises must complete the health check application before accessing Unisa campuses. [Link]
- Students must make an appointment via the Unisa Booking app [Link]
- No one may be allowed to enter Unisa premised without a mask having complied with the screening process and presenting the completed health check
Aside from the start of the academic year it’s also important to renew and re-read such guidelines as the situation around COVID-19 changes.
Infamously here in South Africa the Department of Basic Education (DBE) removed the need for social distancing rules from schools. While this doesn’t apply to the higher education Unisa, it highlights how different arms of the education sector are handling COVID-19 in varying ways.
As of today, 1st March 2022, there have been 3 674 042 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in South Africa. The death toll is quickly reaching the 100 000 mark with government reporting the figure of 99 412 has caused by the pandemic.
