Nobody could have imagined a year ago that the school closure would last this long. But here we are. Schoolchildren have remained unable to study in classrooms and interact with their friends and teachers. There is an indication that schools might reopen in July, but who knows if this will happen?

Most businesses appear to have returned to normal recently. Shopping malls, traditional markets, restaurants and other places have welcomed back customers, although with certain restrictions. Meanwhile, the number of daily infections has dropped markedly in the last few months, indicating that the many good measures have been effective in containing the virus.

On top of these virus containment efforts, mass vaccination has been underway since Jan. 13 and is now inoculating teachers.

Despite the progress, school reopenings are unlikely to happen anytime soon, and this is likely to have many consequences, not only for children but also the Indonesian economy for many years to come. The longer the schools remain closed, the greater the problems and consequences will be.

Various studies predict that school closures will have a decisive effect on the economies of nations for a very long time. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), for example, has estimated that students in grades 1-12 affected by the closures might expect 3 percent lower incomes over their lifetimes. The loss in income is likely to be much higher among disadvantaged students. For nations, long-term growth related to reduced incomes might yield an average loss of 1.5 percent in annual gross domestic product for the remainder of the century.

Other studies indicate that prolonged school closures could also lead to reduced life expectancy.

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