During a Covid-19 media briefing on Monday evening, the National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority announced the relaxation of a raft of safety measures.
The announcement moves us on to a very different footing although, as the virus has delivered many surprises over nearly three years and may well continue to do so, it probably does not mean that Covid-19 is over just yet – but we are getting much closer. The authority intimated as much, acknowledging that the current situation is stable but that the “pandemic is ongoing and the next phase will require community responsibility”.
NCEMA said on Monday that the mandate governing the use of face masks indoors would be relaxed except for in a few situations, such as on public transport, hospital visits and in places of worship. While this, of course, is the most visible, welcome and immediate change to our daily lives, the other measures are equally significant in their own ways.
The Covid-19 home quarantine period has been reduced to five days from 10 and close contacts are now asked to test as a precaution and then act accordingly.
The Al Hosn app will retain green status for 30 days following a negative test rather than 14 days, more than doubling the validity period of routine PCR testing regimes for vaccinated people. Unvaccinated community members also now have longer green status validity periods after testing. And finally, daily caseloads will no longer be reported by the authorities.
It is easy to understand why all this has happened now.
NCEMA said on Monday that “we are witnessing a recovery from the pandemic, as the situation is stable in the country, and cases are declining while deaths are nearly zero". Low cases and better outcomes equals a firm step in the better direction and, it seems, a future with fewer masks.
There has been a gradual change leading up to Monday’s welcome announcement
Average reported cases have been declining since reaching a recent peak in early July, vaccination rates are high and, more importantly, outcomes from positive tests have continued to improve as knowledge and understanding of the complexities of the virus has grown. The uncertain world of the earliest days of the pandemic has been replaced by the greater certainty and higher confidence of today.
There has, of course, been a gradual change leading up to Monday’s welcome announcement.
The outdoor face mask mandate was withdrawn in February, requirements for social distancing were reduced as capacity limits were increased at public venues, border controls were eased earlier this year, temporary drive-through testing centres have been packed away and protocols redrawn as the threat of the virus has declined. Under Monday’s announcement, “event organisers can decide on the precautionary measures to be applied, according to the situation".
The country’s considered approach to the pandemic has consistently placed it in the upper reaches of the Bloomberg Resilience Index and, today, puts it top of a nation brand performance league table that measures a number of metrics, including perception and performance.
No longer tracking those daily figures of infections and recoveries will be a hard habit to break for some, me included, given they have been a fixture of our lives for more than two years, although this type of data will still be shared on government websites.
Daily reporting also only offered a snapshot rather than giving deeper insights. Its absence will help balance our emotional reaction to the pandemic. Stress has often risen and fallen in the same way cases have ebbed and flowed since 2020. The recovery period should be far less visceral than the most intense periods of the pandemic.
The other obvious downside of publishing stats daily is that they offer a lagging picture of where the progress of the virus is and are focused on infections, not outcomes.
Many of the precautionary measures that were introduced at the start of the pandemic were put in place to prevent the healthcare system being overwhelmed with hospitalisations. That they were not overrun is testament to the broader strength of the healthcare architecture and Covid-19 response, but raw numbers do not capture that positive reality.
The final step in the broader recovery journey may be to replace routine testing with the ability to only test when needed, such as is if a citizen or resident felt unwell or was presenting with Covid-19 symptoms and wanted to check if they were infected.
Some of the keynotes of the NCEMA briefing indicated that social responsibility will be key in the next phase and a further movement towards home tests or self-certification of testing would be consistent with that.
NCEMA reminded listeners and viewers on Monday that the first positive case was identified in the UAE during the final days of January 2020, so it has been a long haul. And as we approach the finish line of the pandemic, there is also profound awareness of what it has left behind – including generational health and well-being challenges, such as burnout, anxiety and long Covid – which will require prudent and responsible management. That, perhaps, will be one of the greatest challenges of the next phase, but it should not lessen the sense that Monday marked a clear and welcome step towards our collective future.
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Water waste
In the UAE’s arid climate, small shrubs, bushes and flower beds usually require about six litres of water per square metre, daily. That increases to 12 litres per square metre a day for small trees, and 300 litres for palm trees.
Horticulturists suggest the best time for watering is before 8am or after 6pm, when water won't be dried up by the sun.
A global report published by the Water Resources Institute in August, ranked the UAE 10th out of 164 nations where water supplies are most stretched.
The Emirates is the world’s third largest per capita water consumer after the US and Canada.
Tewellah by Nawal Zoghbi is out now.
If you go...
Fly from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Chiang Mai in Thailand, via Bangkok, before taking a five-hour bus ride across the Laos border to Huay Xai. The land border crossing at Huay Xai is a well-trodden route, meaning entry is swift, though travellers should be aware of visa requirements for both countries.
Flights from Dubai start at Dh4,000 return with Emirates, while Etihad flights from Abu Dhabi start at Dh2,000. Local buses can be booked in Chiang Mai from around Dh50
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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'Dark Waters'
Directed by: Todd Haynes
Starring: Mark Ruffalo, Anne Hathaway, William Jackson Harper
Rating: ****
PROFILE OF HALAN
Started: November 2017
Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport and logistics
Size: 150 employees
Investment: approximately $8 million
Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
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The Outsider
Stephen King, Penguin
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Drishyam 2
Directed by: Jeethu Joseph
Starring: Mohanlal, Meena, Ansiba, Murali Gopy
Rating: 4 stars
Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Leaderboard
63 - Mike Lorenzo-Vera (FRA)
64 - Rory McIlroy (NIR)
66 - Jon Rahm (ESP)
67 - Tom Lewis (ENG), Tommy Fleetwood (ENG)
68 - Rafael Cabrera-Bello (ESP), Marcus Kinhult (SWE)
69 - Justin Rose (ENG), Thomas Detry (BEL), Francesco Molinari (ITA), Danny Willett (ENG), Li Haotong (CHN), Matthias Schwab (AUT)
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MATCH INFO
Manchester United v Everton
Where: Old Trafford, Manchester
When: Sunday, kick-off 7pm (UAE)
How to watch: Live on BeIN Sports 11HD
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
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Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
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In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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History's medical milestones
1799 - First small pox vaccine administered
1846 - First public demonstration of anaesthesia in surgery
1861 - Louis Pasteur published his germ theory which proved that bacteria caused diseases
1895 - Discovery of x-rays
1923 - Heart valve surgery performed successfully for first time
1928 - Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin
1953 - Structure of DNA discovered
1952 - First organ transplant - a kidney - takes place
1954 - Clinical trials of birth control pill
1979 - MRI, or magnetic resonance imaging, scanned used to diagnose illness and injury.
1998 - The first adult live-donor liver transplant is carried out
The biog
Name: Dhabia Khalifa AlQubaisi
Age: 23
How she spends spare time: Playing with cats at the clinic and feeding them
Inspiration: My father. He’s a hard working man who has been through a lot to provide us with everything we need
Favourite book: Attitude, emotions and the psychology of cats by Dr Nicholes Dodman
Favourit film: 101 Dalmatians - it remind me of my childhood and began my love of dogs
Word of advice: By being patient, good things will come and by staying positive you’ll have the will to continue to love what you're doing
What is safeguarding?
“Safeguarding, not just in sport, but in all walks of life, is making sure that policies are put in place that make sure your child is safe; when they attend a football club, a tennis club, that there are welfare officers at clubs who are qualified to a standard to make sure your child is safe in that environment,” Derek Bell explains.
