ABU DHABI 17 March 2020: His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, has expressed strong belief that the world will survive the current challenging circumstances.
“We will get through the ongoing tough times and survive the myriad challenges we and the entire world are now experiencing. The hard time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to get stronger than before,” Sheikh Mohamed told a number of sheikhs, ministers and officials at Qasr Al Bahr Majlis yesterday, said Wam.
“The world is going through tough times. We, in the UAE, are lucky, as our conditions are relatively better thanks to many factors, primarily the availability of qualified human cadres capable of efficiently shouldering the responsibility toward confronting the proliferation of the Covid-19. The UAE is faring well, all thanks to the early efforts and measures in place to face this virus.
“We all have seen the difference between the nations which have adopted early precautionary measures and those which haven’t. The former are more successful in containing the spread of the virus and addressing its repercussions, even though they’ve started only a few days or weeks earlier than the latter,” he continued.
UAE confronting challenges
“We are racing against time in confronting the besetting challenges. In the UAE, we have adopted rational and early advanced precautionary measures before other countries around us to stand up to the challenge. And therefore, the infection tally in the UAE is less thanks to our early response to contain the virus at its onset.”
“The UAE has benefitted from the experience of other advanced countries, like Singapore, South Korea and China in confronting the virus. And we are still maintaining transparent channels of coordination with them. Until now we are among the most successful nations in the region in addressing this challenge, both in terms of the number of individuals who have been examined and the potential and resources boasted by the country in this regard.”
On the challenges faced by several world countries in relation to food and medical supplies, Sheikh Mohamed reassured all UAE nationals and residents that the nation is able to “provide all required food and medical supplies continuously and infinitely.”
Food & Medicine
“There are a lot of things the state is doing which we can’t reveal. However, our officials in charge know pretty well that medications and food supplies are a red line in the UAE. I’d like to reassure every citizen and resident of the UAE that our country is infinitely able to supply everyone with all the food and medicine they could ever need. We are well prepared to face any challenge that arises. We have started our preparation ahead of Coronavirus, and Thank God, the UAE is now secure and stable. We have an advanced infrastructure and we’re geared for all challenges whatsoever they are.”
“Our traditions are very dear to us, but we must be practical during these times. I ask every Emirati and resident to do what is necessary, and let’s not allow our traditions to become a source of harm to our families and society.Take care of your mothers and fathers and families,” he added.
Mohamed updated on containment efforts
Sheikh Mohamed yesterday learned about the ongoing national efforts to curb the proliferation of the Covid-19 and contain its repercussions.
This came in a virtual communication meeting convened in the attendance of H.H. Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Chairman of Abu Dhabi Executive Council, H.H. Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan, National Security Adviser, H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, H.H. Sheikh Khalid bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of Abu Dhabi Executive Office, Member of the Executive Council, and a number of senior officials.
During the video conference, Sheikh Mohamed conveyed the directives of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to harness all available resources in support of the coronavirus containment efforts.
“People’s safety in the UAE is a paramount priority irrespective of any other considerations. Ensuring public safety is our top responsibility,” said Sheikh Mohamed, doubling on the exigency that all measures being taken in this respect are efficient enough to address the ongoing daunting challenge.
“We won’t hesitate to take any further precautionary steps if necessity arises over the coming period,” he emphasised.
“The current circumstances we’re going through entail maximum awareness and realisation of the necessity of following all precautionary measures and guidelines to contain the spread of the virus, he added, noting that ” we all share a joint responsibility toward propagating a culture of an efficient societal response to the virus-containment efforts.”
He hailed the efficiency of the government and private health sectors, terming them as the first line of defence against the novel virus. He also appreciated the efforts made by the medical and nursing teams along with the technical and administrative staff in the country as well the shared sectors contributing to protecting the UAE society and ensuring its safety.
Sheikh Mohamed underlined the importance of adopting a holistic approach to ensure a comprehensive epidemiological investigation mechanism linking together all stakeholders and competent bodies in confronting the proliferation of the virus.
Ensure student safety
He stressed the necessity of continuing the educational process in a way that ensures student safety and achieve the educational vision and mission at the same time by employing state-of-the-art technology and modern communication techniques.
He described the role played by media as key in combatting the virus by raising awareness and addressing rumours and fake news, while conveying the health status in the right manner and steering clear of overblown coverage of the developments.
Doubling of Effort
The Abu Dhabi Crown Prince called for doubling efforts to combat the ongoing hazard and maintaining synergy and coordination with all national departments and multilaterals in this regard.
Abdul Rahman bin Mohammad bin Nasser Al Owais, Minister of Health and Prevention, revealed that most of the infected cases are in ”stable” condition except for two cases who are still under intensive care.
”The capacity and readiness of all health facilities and labs in the public and private sectors have been upgraded to conduct high-efficiency virus tests,” said Al Owais, adding that all passengers arriving in the UAE are subject to precautionary measures, including medical examinations and thermal scanning through 32 land, sea and air exit-entry points.
”The UAE has a sufficient strategic reserve of essential medical equipment to conduct advanced tests for COVID-19, in addition to other necessary medical supplies and facilities, such as airborne infection isolation rooms, in addition to 500-700 specialist medical teams working round the clock,” the minister affirmed.
e-Learning
Addressing the video conference on the distance learning issue, Hussain bin Ibrahim Al Hammadi, Minister of Education, said most of the universities and schools are now applying the e-learning system after up to 1,196 training workshops have been organised on how to operate the system by launching pilots at a number of schools.
”Some 508 principals have been trained and now we have 620-e-learning enabled schools,” he explained.
On school bus safety measures, the minister noted that more than 4,950 drivers and 5,171 attendants and escorts have been trained on safety protocols to handle emergencies and apply precautionary measures.
“We have also 667 highly trained nursing professionals to deal with any potential case in the school community,” he concluded.
Mohamed bin Zayed, King of Jordan review efforts
His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, and King Abdullah II of Jordan, reviewed the latest regional and global developments related to the proliferation of Covid-19 over a phone call.
Along with the efforts made by the two countries to address the repercussions of the novel virus, the two leaders deliberated the prospects of further consolidating the brotherly ties between the UAE and Jordan across all fronts.
Sheikh Mohamed underlined the UAE’s support for Jordan in fighting the novel coronavirus, wishing safety for its people and speedy recovery for the ill.
The Jordanian King commended the stances adopted by the UAE, leadership and people, toward his country, reiterating his country’s support for UAE under all circumstances.
Mohamed bin Zayed, King of Spain review global fight
His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayeds, discussed over a phone call with King Felipe VI of Spain the global fight against Covid-19.
The two leaders underlined the necessity of maintaining global channels of coordination to curb the spread of the novel virus, with Sheikh Mohamed extending his condolences to the Spanish King on the Coronavirus-related deaths in his country, and wishing speedy recovery to the ill.
Sheikh Mohamed reiterated the UAE’s full support for the Kingdom of Spain in fighting the virus and expressed confidence in the Spanish government’s ability to contain its repercussions. He underscored the UAE’s belief in the importance of maintaining global synergy and concerted efforts to combat the virus.
The Spanish King thanked Sheikh Mohamed for his call and hailed the spirit of cooperation exhibited by the UAE toward various countries of the world in confronting the pandemic.
