TUT is producing its own sanitisers, disinfectants – Nzimande

Speaking at media briefing on Tuesday, Higher Education Minister, Blade Nzimande said Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) has redirected its funds to tackle Covid-19 and the university is manufacturing its own sanitisers.

Nzimande said he is happy with the progress at TUT, which is the largest contact learning institution in South Africa, after he visited the university on Tuesday morning.

“My impressions about TUT’s readiness is the fact that they have repurposed one of their chemical engineering laboratories to produce sanitisers and disinfectants for the whole university and also supply surrounding communities,” he said.

The minister continued to say: “TUT has also a well-developed plan for multi-modal remote learning, which will ensure that it reaches the remotest  of their students anywhere in our country for academic support and delivery of learning materials, starting on 20 July.”He also announced that all students and lecturers across the country will be required to register for an app called HealthCheck developed by Higher Health which will manage and deal with Covid-19 in post school institutions.

“The tool is available in various platforms including USSD, WhatsApp or simple Weebased. One does not need to have a smart-phone. You can use any device to access the HealthCheck”All students and staff, approximately two million people, will be required to register for HealthCheck and use it every day to assess their own level of risk prior to entering campuses.

“Based on the answers entered on the platform, the person receives a message with the low/moderate/high level risk reading. If the risk is low, the individual will receive clearance valid for 24 hours,” he said.

Nzimande also said his department was dealing with the affects of mental health issues facing university students which are related to Covid-19.

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