Emirates IDs can now be used at Dubai airport to provide proof of a PCR test and vaccine status.
A new deal between Emirates airline and Dubai Health Authority will remove the need for UAE residents to present a physical negative test certificate or vaccine card.
The system was unveiled to delegates on the first day of Arab Health, a major exhibition running this week in Dubai.
Passengers insert their Emirates ID into a card reader when they arrive at check-in desks. The move is expected to speed up the airport as thousands of families prepare to travel abroad this summer.
"Our partnership with the Dubai Health Authority in managing passenger travel is unique and is a first step towards other initiatives that will be launched in the near future," said Adel Al Redha, chief operating officer at Emirates airline.
“This is a testament to Dubai’s progressive approach in delivering innovative digital solutions across all aspects of services.”
A full digital verification of Covid-19 medical records is under way between Emirates airline and Dubai Health Authority.
The departures system is not mandatory but should speed up check-in times for residents, many of whom carry their Emirates ID wherever they go.
Emirates assured users it will only process information relating specifically to the Covid-19 entry requirements and the customer’s destination, and not their wider health records.
Once check-in is completed, information relating medical records is discarded from the airline's system, officials said.
A travel pass developed by the International Air Transport Association (Iata) is also now live and can share Covid-19 test results and vaccination cards with airlines.
The Iata Travel Pass will be used regionally by Emirates, Etihad Airways, Saudia and Gulf Air on select routes to relieve pressure on airports and immigration check-points as more people plan their travel in the months ahead.
The airline unveiled the system a day after Dubai Airports announced that Terminal 1 at Dubai International Airport will reopen on June 24.
The transport hub anticipates a "huge surge" in passenger demand and plan a hiring spree to cope, Dubai Airports chief executive Paul Griffiths said on Bloomberg TV.
Around 3,500 people are to be taken on as the airport prepares, with 66 airlines currently using Terminals 2 and 3 moving operations to Terminal 1.
An integrated, paperless medical records system linked to Emirates ID has been in the pipeline for years.
The pandemic has accelerated the response from health authorities to reduce unnecessary contact that could encourage infection.
“The Dubai Health Authority has been strongly foraying into paperless healthcare over the past few years to enhance patient convenience and further improve healthcare delivery,” said Ahmed Al Nuaimi, CEO of Joint Corporate Support Services at the DHA.
“Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, we have deployed and fostered the use of digital healthcare.
"This strategic foresight into investing in digital healthcare has paved the way today for such a pioneering integration."
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
'Manmarziyaan' (Colour Yellow Productions, Phantom Films)
Director: Anurag Kashyap
Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Taapsee Pannu, Vicky Kaushal
Rating: 3.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 2.9-litre, V6 twin-turbo
Transmission: seven-speed PDK dual clutch automatic
Power: 375bhp
Torque: 520Nm
Price: Dh332,800
On sale: now
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
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
Bio
Born in Dubai in 1994
Her father is a retired Emirati police officer and her mother is originally from Kuwait
She Graduated from the American University of Sharjah in 2015 and is currently working on her Masters in Communication from the University of Sharjah.
Her favourite film is Pacific Rim, directed by Guillermo del Toro
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
The Birkin bag is made by Hermès.
It is named after actress and singer Jane Birkin
Noone from Hermès will go on record to say how much a new Birkin costs, how long one would have to wait to get one, and how many bags are actually made each year.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
The five pillars of Islam
Zayed Sustainability Prize
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More from Neighbourhood Watch:
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
More on Quran memorisation:
Moral education needed in a 'rapidly changing world'
Moral education lessons for young people is needed in a rapidly changing world, the head of the programme said.
Alanood Al Kaabi, head of programmes at the Education Affairs Office of the Crown Price Court - Abu Dhabi, said: "The Crown Price Court is fully behind this initiative and have already seen the curriculum succeed in empowering young people and providing them with the necessary tools to succeed in building the future of the nation at all levels.
"Moral education touches on every aspect and subject that children engage in.
"It is not just limited to science or maths but it is involved in all subjects and it is helping children to adapt to integral moral practises.
"The moral education programme has been designed to develop children holistically in a world being rapidly transformed by technology and globalisation."
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Monster
Directed by: Anthony Mandler
Starring: Kelvin Harrison Jr., John David Washington
3/5
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
