Kenya:Government extends worship services by 30 minutes

By Samuel Ouma

Worship sessions will now go on for 1 hour and 30 minutes effective from Tuesday, August 18, 2020.

During press conference on Tuesday, the interfaith council on the national response to the coronavirus pandemic said they are convinced that places of worship can adhere to Covid-19 requirements after reviewing the level of compliance in all 47 Counties.

The council’s chair archbishop Anthony Muheria said that every worship service can now last for 90 minutes as opposed to the earlier announced timings which was 60 minutes.

Moreover, congregants aged between 6 and 65 have also been allowed to attend a church service.

In announcements issued by President Uhuru Kenyatta in early July, congregants below age 13 and above 58 were banned from attending worship centres as part of strict measures in containing the spread of the respiratory disease.

Elderly and the sick have been urged to stay at home.

Still a 100 people are permitted to stand a service and centres of worship must keep social distancing, install hand washing equipment, take temperatures of worshippers before allowing them in, fumigate the places of worship after every session and own alcohol-based hand sanitizer.

Physical worship meetings were suspended in March, a move that saw a number of churches resorting to online services.