The interfaith council that was tasked with formulating guidelines for the reopening of places of worship has made new recommendations after monitoring activities in the pilot reopening.
The council chaired by (Rev) Archbishop Anthony Muheria of the Nyeri Catholic Archdiocese, on Tuesday, August 11, expressed satisfaction with how worship centers were conducting their services.
During the last three weeks, the team had the opportunity to visit almost every county, where it met with a representative group of religious leaders from all faiths.
“We specifically wish to congratulate and appreciate all Kenyans whose compliance to the guidelines in the places of worship has been exceptional, in this initial pre-opening phase.
“We have had over 90% compliance in the places of worship that reopened to the public. This is an exceptional performance and example to all in the nation,” the council praised.
The team considered that though the number of cases was rising, Kenyans had shown willingness and commitment to follow the Covid-19 safety guidelines.
New guidelines
The task force stated that the number of people permitted to congregate would be determined by social distancing (1.5 metres) and size of space available.
The time for conducting services was extended from the initial one hour to 90 minutes.
The new age limit for attendees was revised to range from over 6 years and under 65 years.
The enforcement of the rule of mask use, hand washing and social distancing was reiterated.
Places of worship were urged to continue using thermo guns and disinfecting surfaces regularly.
“We however continue to urge all those who are elderly, sick or with health conditions, to still worship from their homes. We need to apply personal responsibility, and not expose ourselves when we are still seeing rising infections,” the team advised.
The taskforce expressed disappointment at how funerals were being conducted and also revised burial guidelines.
“We note sadly that the guidelines in Funerals continue to be flouted, and compliance is below 10%. Notably, as President Uhuru Kenyatta referred in his July 27, speech, the rules and guidelines are easily waived and flouted depending on the social status of individuals.
“In this phase one that is now set to begin, the total number of attendants in funerals is set at 100 persons. This is a reasonable number that is not too constraining. We plead that we strictly follow this requirement in order to contain any infection spread through Funerals. We also insist that there should not be food sharing as the risk becomes even higher when people remove their masks to eat,” the interfaith council stated.
