Safe Return to Schools in Mexico

In 2021, when vaccines were unavailable to much of the population in Mexico and the best protections against Covid-19 were wearing masks, social distancing, and hand washing, we commissioned female seamstresses in the El Mante and Panuco communities to make 50,000 reusable, washable cloth masks that complied with the Ministry of Health standards. They were distributed to students, faculty and administrators at 515 schools -- 164 of these schools (with 12,332 students) surround Panuco, and 351 schools (with 28,213 students) surround El Mante. In total 40,545 students ages 4-15 received masks. At the same time, they were educated on the importance of general hygiene, hand washing, and social distancing.