Face masks sewed by workers of the University hospital are seen, as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues in Essen, Germany, March 30, 2020. REUTERS/Leon Kuegeler
The World Health Organization (WHO) says that children aged 12 and over should wear masks to help tackle the COVID-19 pandemic under the same conditions as adults, while children between six and 11 should wear them on a risk-based approach.
In a document on the WHO website dated August 21, the WHO and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)also noted that children aged five years and under should not be required to wear masks based on the safety and overall interest of the child.
Studies suggest older children potentially play a more active role in the transmission of the new coronavirus than younger children, the WHO, and UNICEF said, adding more data was needed to better understand the role of children and adolescents in the transmission of the virus, which causes COVID-19.
WHO first advised people to wear masks in public on June 5 to help reduce the spread of the disease, but had previously not issued specific guidance for children.
More than 23 million people have been reported to be infected by the coronavirus globally
