Face-to-face education will begin as scheduled in Turkey, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said Wednesday, and unvaccinated adults will undergo frequent COVID-19 testing.
"It is not possible for us to compromise face-to-face education ... We will take necessary measures to protect students and their families," Koca said in a speech following the coronavirus science council meeting.
Vaccination is a social responsibility that cannot be left up to choice anymore, Koca said adding that teachers, instructors and families of the students should be vaccinated.
"Vaccine should be a must for business and education to continue, the people who are not vaccinated should present negative PCR test results regularly," Koca said.
Daily cases have surged from a low of just over 4,000 in early July to over 20,000 for the last two weeks since authorities relaxed pandemic-related restrictions.
As of Wednesday, half of the Turkish adults have received at least two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, Koca said on Twitter. Turkey has administered nearly 6 million third doses to health workers and people over 50 years old.
Turkey plans to open schools for face-to-face education in September.
