A decision to go ahead with the youth camps, day camps and summer courses will be taken by the third week of May at the latest, the Minister for Youth in the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, Valérie Glatigny, announced on Tuesday on La Première (RTBF).
"We hope" that these activities can take place, she said. "We know how crucial it is: there are 2,700 camps this summer, 1,200 day camps, courses, and we know how important it is for young people to socialise and improve their psychological well-being.
A consultation is underway with Flanders - which sends 1,200 youth camps to Wallonia every summer - and health experts. A joint Flanders-Walloon Federation-Brussels protocol is being studied for the resumption of activities "under ideal health conditions", according to Glatigny (MR).
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Currently, a proposal of 50 young people per camp is on the table.
Parents across Belgium have been voicing concern over a lack of information concerning activities for children, who have already been participating in teaching from home since the start of the outbreak. The most recent announcement of measures by Belgian Prime Minister Sophie Wilmès received a lot of criticism, in part because of the economic focus of the current phase-out.
The next big step for decision-makers will be a meeting on Wednesday to discuss the next key stage in Belgium’s deconfinement strategy. Most notably, from 11 May the bulk of the country’s commercial activities will be allowed to restart - providing it gets the final go-ahead.
The final decision will reportedly be on the agenda on Wednesday, with federal regional and community leaders set to base their decision on the latest epidemiological data.
On Monday, spokespersons with Belgium’s coronavirus task force spoke of positive progress, reporting less than 500 new confirmed cases and fewer than 100 hospital admissions for the second day in a row.
Jules Johnston
The Brussels Times
