Some 181 colleges across Libya’s public and private universities will begin their academic year in-person in mid-October, under a new pandemic preparedness evaluation system adopted by the country’s Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research. However, another 50 colleges will postpone the school year till the end of October after all preventive measures have been implemented.
“Study at Libya’s universities will start in the second half of October, based on the ministry’s decision, taking into consideration the need to follow the necessary preventive precautions,” said Muhammad Masoud Qanan, president of Nalut University, a public institution in western Libya. There are committees working in all colleges for evaluation and follow-up, Qanan said, after which a decision will be issued by the university president.
As of early October, Libya had recorded more than 340,000 Covid-19 cases and more than 4,600 deaths related to the coronavirus, according to the World Health Organization.