When Italy passed a law in 2019 requiring children to receive vaccinations for a range of diseases – including chickenpox, polio, measles, mumps and rubella – before attending school, the country’s health minister, Giulia Grillo, did not mince her words: “No vaccine, no school.”
The Lorenzin law, as the measure is known, was instrumental in bringing Italy’s childhood vaccination rates in line with the World Health Organisation’s recommended target of 95 per cent. Although the WHO estimates that vaccines of all kinds save up to 3 million lives each year, efforts to use legislation or policy to drive vaccination campaigns have not been embraced universally. Most European and African countries do not require children attending schools and day cares to be vaccinated; most in the Middle East and the Americas do.
The Covid-19 pandemic has revived discussions worldwide over the role of immunisation campaigns in public safety – this time among adults. As with childhood vaccination, governments are most concerned with ensuring that shared spaces are safe – for what is a return to “normal” if not a return to a world in which everyone feels safe out in public?
Saudi Arabia will require pilgrims to have both doses to attend Hajj
In Abu Dhabi, where more than 93 per cent of those eligible have received a Covid-19 vaccine, authorities have outlined a plan to secure most public areas against the virus, by only allowing vaccinated individuals into areas such as shopping centres, gyms, cafes and restaurants. The measures do not apply for anyone under the age of 15, as well as those with vaccine exemptions.
While Abu Dhabi’s measures are more detailed than those adopted in other places, many countries are trialling policies that would privilege those who – unless prevented from doing so – opt to vaccinate. France, for example, plans to allow fully vaccinated tourists from select countries to enter. Saudi Arabia has announced that it will require all pilgrims to have had both doses of the vaccine for Hajj. This month, former UK health secretary Matt Hancock said that all care home staff in the country would need to have both jabs of an approved vaccine, and that the measure might be extended to the entire health system.
Many private employers are considering similar measures. People working in the New York offices of investment bank Morgan Stanley will reportedly be barred from entering the building next month unless they are fully vaccinated. Australian airline Qantas has even said inoculated passengers would be in with the chance of winning a year's free flights.
While these decisions are not easy to take, any downsides pale in comparison to the disruptive lockdowns people across the world have had to endure. If getting a jab or a regular PCR test seems hard, people should seek comfort in the fact that by sticking to measures for almost two years, they have already demonstrated the resolve to do their bit for the public good.
There is also no avoiding the fact that vaccines are a central pillar for pandemic recovery. The first phase of fighting the Covid-19 pandemic was a scramble to contain a virus about which the world knew virtually nothing. The second phase was about learning to reopen economies, schools and necessary travel in a manner that did not jeopardise overall safety . Recovery is about learning to live with this virus that constantly demands vigilance.
Each day that passes, more people get vaccinated, and the worrisome prospect of infection diminishes. The truth of the matter is simple. To echo Ms Grillo's saying, no vaccine, no normal.
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The biog
Name: Salem Alkarbi
Age: 32
Favourite Al Wasl player: Alexandre Oliveira
First started supporting Al Wasl: 7
Biggest rival: Al Nasr
ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
FFP EXPLAINED
What is Financial Fair Play?
Introduced in 2011 by Uefa, European football’s governing body, it demands that clubs live within their means. Chiefly, spend within their income and not make substantial losses.
What the rules dictate?
The second phase of its implementation limits losses to €30 million (Dh136m) over three seasons. Extra expenditure is permitted for investment in sustainable areas (youth academies, stadium development, etc). Money provided by owners is not viewed as income. Revenue from “related parties” to those owners is assessed by Uefa's “financial control body” to be sure it is a fair value, or in line with market prices.
What are the penalties?
There are a number of punishments, including fines, a loss of prize money or having to reduce squad size for European competition – as happened to PSG in 2014. There is even the threat of a competition ban, which could in theory lead to PSG’s suspension from the Uefa Champions League.
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The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Transmission: seven-speed auto
Power: 420 bhp
Torque: 624Nm
Price: from Dh293,200
On sale: now
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Tips for used car buyers
- Choose cars with GCC specifications
- Get a service history for cars less than five years old
- Don’t go cheap on the inspection
- Check for oil leaks
- Do a Google search on the standard problems for your car model
- Do your due diligence. Get a transfer of ownership done at an official RTA centre
- Check the vehicle’s condition. You don’t want to buy a car that’s a good deal but ends up costing you Dh10,000 in repairs every month
- Validate warranty and service contracts with the relevant agency and and make sure they are valid when ownership is transferred
- If you are planning to sell the car soon, buy one with a good resale value. The two most popular cars in the UAE are black or white in colour and other colours are harder to sell
Tarek Kabrit, chief executive of Seez, and Imad Hammad, chief executive and co-founder of CarSwitch.com
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Virtuzone GCC Sixes
Date and venue Friday and Saturday, ICC Academy, Dubai Sports City
Time Matches start at 9am
Groups
A Blighty Ducks, Darjeeling Colts, Darjeeling Social, Dubai Wombats; B Darjeeling Veterans, Kuwait Casuals, Loose Cannons, Savannah Lions; C Awali Taverners, Darjeeling, Dromedary, Darjeeling Good Eggs
Genesis G80 2020 5.0-litre Royal Specs
Engine: 5-litre V8
Gearbox: eight-speed automatic
Power: 420hp
Torque: 505Nm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.4L/100km
Price: Dh260,500
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
