The Gulf Health Council and officials from several countries praised the Ministry of Health. In comparison to its efforts, achievements, and national cadres in confronting the pandemic, the Council said in a statement published on its official platforms that the positive rise in the figures for immunization rates and the number of vaccines provided in Saudi Arabia reflects the impact and effectiveness of the approach taken by the Ministry in confronting the epidemic, and the Gulf Council expressed its pride in what health has achieved. Saudi Arabia is an achievement in this regard.
Leading by numbers
The Saudi Ministry of Health ranked second in the world in its response to the Corona pandemic – according to the global classification of Bloomberg Agency – and was able to reach more than 90% in immunizing the age group of 60 years and over, and to reach 95.9% in the targeted immunization, and the recovery rate reached. of the injured to 95.4%.
It also provided 58,812,295 vaccine doses and 38,791,981 tests, and served more than 5 million beneficiaries in the Tetamman Corona clinics.
Huge effort
“Okaz” solicited the opinion of the Jordanian Ambassador, Ali Al-Kayed, in a previous interview with “Okaz” about the Saudi methodology in dealing with the pandemic. The epidemic and the gradual systematic return to normal life, helped by the awareness shown by the Saudi citizen and residents during this difficult period that the world went through.
Their actions are decisive
The Czech ambassador, Juraj Kudelka, explained to “Okaz” in a previous interview that the measures taken by the Kingdom were decisive since the beginning of the epidemic to secure health and protect the non-oil economy, and Saudi Arabia implemented a number of measures to adapt to the new situation and its repercussions, and was able to quickly adapt to the general situation compared to a number of countries. . Saudi Arabia also witnessed a tight closure, except for humanitarian or emergency cases. And by comparing the numbers of infections or deaths, we find that Saudi Arabia is one of the most responsive countries to confront the repercussions of the Corona virus, whether on the economic or societal level, and it also launched a wide vaccination campaign that helped limit the spread of the virus, and it remained one of the most prominent countries that were able to address the global epidemic, so it became one of the first Non-European countries that have been included in the green list.
The Czech ambassador added that he had personal experience with vaccination in Saudi Arabia, as he closely observed the organization, places, efforts and the mighty medical cadres that reflect the government's interest in continuing its efforts in dealing with the epidemic, and the (My Health) and (Tawakulna) applications helped greatly in organizing efforts, whether In fighting the virus or quickly getting vaccinated in a timely manner.
A tribute that reflects seriousness
The Saudi ambassador to the European Union, Saad Al-Arifi, considered the praise of the ambassadors of foreign countries in the Kingdom, led by the ambassador of the European Union in Riyadh, for the measures taken by Saudi Arabia and the services it provided to citizens and residents, and even violators of the residency system, reflecting the Kingdom's seriousness in preserving the health of the citizen and resident, and the effectiveness of the measures that have been taken. and serve as an example.
Indonesian appreciation
The Saudi ambassador to Indonesia, Issam Al-Thaqafi, indicated to “Okaz” that the world is still suffering from the repercussions of the Corona pandemic, which extended its duration and changed many of the world’s economies and policies. Represented by the authorities responsible for Hajj and Umrah, great appreciation for organizing the entry of Indonesians to the Kingdom to perform Umrah, and these measures were only taken to protect the health and safety of everyone who entered the Kingdom to perform Umrah and that the suspension of Hajj for the past two years contributed to limiting the spread of the epidemic. Indeed, the Indonesian government decided in the past two years to prevent its pilgrims from performing Hajj, in line with Saudi Arabia's decisions to preserve the safety of pilgrims everywhere.
gains from confrontation
A spokesman for the Ministry of Health, Dr. Muhammad Al-Abdali, considered that Saudi Arabia has made gains in confronting Corona, and it must be preserved. He added to “Okaz” that the Kingdom was able to avoid repeated waves of the Corona virus and its mutants, referring to the stability of matters in Saudi Arabia regarding Corona to the confidence in the Kingdom’s experts who provided the ministry with information contributing to decision-making that led to protecting the lives of the population in the Kingdom.
A leadership role locally and globally
Saudi Arabia is one of the first countries to start precautionary and preventive measures, and sensed the danger behind this outbreak, which turned into a global pandemic within a short time. Saudi efforts were not limited to the local level, but it went beyond that to the global levels due to its political, strategic and economic weight. This is evident in the Kingdom's leadership role in the presidency of the Group of Twenty for the year 2020. Several international bodies and channels have praised what the Kingdom has done at the national and international levels to enhance response, develop treatment methods, ensure the availability of preventive equipment, and its initiative to provide financial support with 500 million dollars to support international efforts in dealing with the pandemic. This support comes in response to the Kingdom's commitment to financing international organizations according to the agreements announced at the extraordinary summit of the G20 leaders, which the Kingdom called for. And because of the accumulated experience that Saudi Arabia has over the years in risk management and its continuous evaluation to ensure national and global health security and the security and safety of pilgrims, Umrah performers and visitors every year and to develop a highly efficient health system, and because of its previous experiences in confronting the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome epidemic, the Kingdom has taken many measures Early precautionary measures and procedures at the highest levels based on scientific evidence.
proactive control measures
Saudi Arabia took a series of proactive and precautionary measures to combat the COVID-19 pandemic before the first case was confirmed in the country; The most important of which are: activating command and control centers, suspending travel to China, and suspending entry to the Kingdom with a tourist visa. With the confirmation of the first case in the Kingdom, firm and effective precautionary measures were taken to impose social distancing and intensify the main capacities and resources on several fronts to contain, prevent, prepare for, detect and treat the virus within an integrated national approach to combating the pandemic. Among the most important of these measures is the suspension of Umrah, study and all international and domestic flights, the start of the expanded field survey process and the expansion of laboratory capacity to conduct more than 9 million tests for the Covid-19 virus. It also included a partial and then total curfew in various regions of the Kingdom, and the issuance of a decision to treat all citizens, residents and irregulars free of charge and without any consequences.
Concepts in crisis management
The Kingdom's experience in confronting the emerging pandemic added innovative concepts in crisis management, and presented to the world, in dealing with the health, social and economic repercussions of the situation, a unique model with its human values, and it did not differentiate between a citizen and an expatriate.
The management of the crisis in Saudi Arabia was characterized by the integrated approach of the governmental, private and voluntary work system, its goal in the first place is to preserve public health according to approved standards, in addition to supporting the efforts of countries and international organizations, especially the World Health Organization, to stop the spread of the virus, contain it and eliminate it, God willing.
Crisis management was also characterized by investigation and scrutiny of health threats, assessment of the degree of risk, and preparedness with firm preventive measures in their implementation. Therefore, the results of the follow-up of the Command and Control Center of the Ministry of Health on the level of infection with the virus (covid-19) in Wuhan, China, prompted the Kingdom's early response to confront the repercussions of the virus. The royal order to form the “Higher Committee for Taking All Precautionary Measures and Measures Necessary to Prevent the Spread of the Pandemic,” whose membership includes 24 government agencies.
The Kingdom is credited with its proactive management of the crisis in taking the necessary measures, and the suspension of “traveling to China and entering the Kingdom on a tourist visa” came in February 2020 in order to avoid the epidemic reaching its lands, which reveals the extent of early sensing in the Kingdom of the threat of the virus and the challenges it poses, compared to the timeline of the stages of development. pandemic; Starting with China's announcement on December 31, 2019, of recording several cases of pneumonia, the causes of which were not known at the time, and later led to the discovery of the "emerging corona virus", until the World Health Organization's announcement on March 11, 2020, of classifying the virus as a "global pandemic".
In its strategy to confront the pandemic, the Kingdom relied on its experience accumulated over decades in dealing with epidemics and human crowds during the Hajj and Umrah seasons, especially in matters of organization and health care, in addition to the advanced infrastructure of the health sector, which provides medical care and treatment services through more than 494 hospitals. Distributed in various regions of the Kingdom.
Benefiting from MERS experiences
The Kingdom's experience in combating Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in 2012 and the years that followed contributed to raising the readiness of hospitals and establishing separate isolation units for respiratory diseases equipped with specialized ventilation systems to protect doctors from infection.
Aware of the negative impact resulting from anti-virus measures on citizens and companies, the Kingdom implemented measures aimed at economic stimulus, providing guarantees to cover 60% of the income of affected citizens working in the private sector, and allowing business owners to defer payment of value-added, production and income taxes for a period of three months, in addition to Providing a support package for small and medium enterprises as needed, amounting to 177 billion riyals, while pumping 47 billion riyals to the Ministry of Health, and ordered the provision of free treatment for all the injured and the conduct of large-scale examinations among random groups of the population in order to early detection of cases, and the launch of an electronic application that provides the results of the examinations.
In support of the health sector, with the aim of increasing the capacity, new mobile hospitals have been equipped with a capacity of 100 beds each, characterized by flexibility of movement according to need, in addition to preparing 25 hospitals to receive confirmed cases, providing 80 thousand beds in all health sectors, and 8 thousand intensive care beds, in addition to Providing 2,200 isolation beds, and strengthening monitoring and control procedures for the Corona virus at the entry points to the Kingdom.
Fixed and mobile examination centers have also been established, in which an appointment is booked through the "My Health" application, with the aim of reaching neighborhoods crowded with citizens, residents and foreigners, regardless of their legal status.
Limited Hajj.. and successful
The National Health Laboratory succeeded in building the necessary laboratory capabilities to identify and detect the disease in a record time since the emergence of the first infectious cases in China, and the Global Center for Crowd Medicine at the Ministry of Health worked on developing the “covid-19” tool as a measurement method for assessing health risks in gatherings and events, and providing recommendations. Which is concerned with promoting health safety and prevention against the risks of the new Corona virus (covid-19), and it has been published on the Ministry’s website.
The Kingdom's efforts to deal with the crisis continued in a large way, including humanitarian, health, security, social and economic work, as it received 10 Saudi students after they were evacuated from the Chinese Wuhan region, and conducted all laboratory tests to ensure their safety.
And with the confirmation of the first case of the new Corona virus on March 2, 2020, and the subsequent increase in the number of confirmed and contact cases in various regions, many preventive measures and strict regulatory rules were taken in that exceptional circumstance, so the response from the citizen and resident was up to the responsibility, and coping with the reality stage, so that the impact of adherence to application is reflected in the behavior of society at the individual and group level at home, at work, and in various locations, according to health protocols; With the aim of containing, preventing and detecting the virus, and providing treatment within an integrated national approach.
A pilgrimage was held in the year 1441 AH in limited numbers for those wishing to perform the rituals of pilgrimage for different nationalities who are inside the Kingdom, in order to ensure that the ritual is performed in a healthy and safe manner and in a manner that achieves the requirements of prevention and social divergence necessary to ensure human safety and protection from the threats of this pandemic, and to achieve the purposes of Islamic law in preserving the human soul with permission. God.
Support the world with aids and control expenses
Saudi Arabia, the G20 Chair for 2020, announced its contribution of $500 million to support international efforts to tackle the virus.
The Kingdom's efforts at the global level included providing $10 million in support to the World Health Organization, and in response to the urgent appeal it launched to all countries, with the aim of intensifying efforts to take global measures to combat the spread of Corona.
It also provided a package of aid and health supplies to the People's Republic of China, including respirators, solution pumps, intravenous pumps, defibrillators, patient monitors, some blankets, protective clothing, and masks.
In the same context, the Kingdom, through the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center, has supported the Republic of Yemen with special equipment to combat the pandemic, medicines and medical supplies worth $3 million, and studying the establishment of a project in cooperation with the World Health Organization at an amount of $10 million, to ensure permanent preparedness and diagnose cases. and preparing rooms for isolation. It provided more than 3 million dollars in aid to Palestine.
And with the gradual return of life to its normal form, while maintaining some measures in order to preserve safety, the Kingdom was able to overcome the crisis of the emerging Corona virus pandemic with minimal losses, in light of the efforts made by the state to protect citizens and residents.
amal222424@Amal Al-Saeed (Riyadh)
