Dubai’s Supreme Committee of Crisis and Disaster Management has urged all members of the community to get themselves vaccinated with both vaccine doses before planning foreign travel during the summer holidays.

Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum on Wednesday chaired a meeting of the Committee to review the COVID-19 safety and precautionary measures implemented in the emirate to curb the spread of the virus. This meeting holds significant importance particularly amid the emergence of new highly-transmissible variants of the virus that are increasing the risk of infection among community members.

With the holiday season approaching, the Committee has encouraged citizens and residents planning international trips to start their foreign journey only 14 days after receiving the second dose of the vaccine. This will provide sufficient time to the body to maximise its immune preparedness against the disease.

The Supreme Committee has underlined the importance of vaccination as a key tool of protection against the virus. The UAE has received top ranking in the world in terms of the distribution of vaccine doses per 100 persons in the country. So far, the UAE National Vaccination Campaign has administered over 15 million vaccine doses, at a distribution rate of 152.41 doses for every 100 persons.

In addition, the Committee has called on all travellers to comply with necessary precautionary measures during overseas travel and avoid visiting those destinations that are experiencing severe impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this regard, the Committee has advised everyone to understand and strictly abide by the precautionary norms of their destination countries to prevent the risk of infection and ensure smooth travel.

"Observing meticulous hygiene and strict precautionary measures including social distancing and mask wearing while travelling and spending time in public places is essential to minimise infection risks," the Committee noted.

It has also urged travellers to avoid going to crowded areas in order to prevent potential exposure to infected people with the aim of ensuring lowest possible risks from the disease.

In conclusion, the Committee hailed Dubai's continuous efforts to ensure the highest levels of protection for all community members against the virus despite dire challenges posed by the pandemic.

Dubai has emerged to be one of the world’s most robust globally-recognised precautionary protocol regimes that has successfully protected citizens, residents and visitors from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

WAM