And the CEO isn't alone in feeling that the need for education was sacrificed for some measure of security during the pandemic.
That's 1 year and 7 months since they've sat in a classroom, raised their hands to answer a question, or played in a schoolyard with their friends. All these things - essential to a childhood and an education - lost to COVID-19.
Maheia says that moving forward, flexibility will be key in determining who can go back to school and when.
Reporter
"What happens when those criteria's either don't complement each other or directly clash? In Belize City for example the geographic area is terrible, because the numbers are very high, but in that same community, the community context may really necessities that those kids need to go back to school. So how are you finding that balance?"
Dian Maheia, CEO, Ministry of Education
"This is when and why we work with the schools. Not every school is applying right now to return. Some schools have already made the decision. They've contacted us, they said we are going to continue with remote learning, we are going to continue to distance learning and that's okay. This is not a mandated return for every school right now. So, if we have a school that is saying look. because of the covid numbers right now, we are not prepared. We are going to re-evaluate in 2 weeks. We are fine with that. Flexibility is critical right now."
