Abu Dhabi: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) will gradually lift all the COVID restrictions, starting from tomorrow, February 15.
This new decision comes in the wake of the decline in Omicron-driven COVID-19 cases in the country since January 22 when cases had reached 3,000 per day. Since then, the daily cases have been on the decline. On Monday, February 14, the UAE reported 1,191 new cases of COVID-19 and 2,713 recoveries.
On February 9, 2022, the National Emergency Crisis Management Authority announced that the UAE will gradually lift the COVID-19 restrictions to reach full capacity at venues by mid-February, as the number of infections and hospitalizations decreased.
Here are the guidelines which will come into effect from tomorrow
- NCEMA decided to raise the maximum capacities at social events, including weddings and funerals, and local authorities will determine the number of participants allowed.
- Social distancing in mosques and places of worship has also been reduced to one metre.
- Sports facilities such as football stadiums will operate at 100 per cent while maintaining the Al Hosn app’s Green Pass protocol. Under the new guidelines, all visitors must have a Green Pass on their Al Hosn app or a negative PCR test no more than 96 hours old to enter the stadium.
- The cinemas in the UAE will begin operating at maximum capacity.
The authorities stressed the need for people to continue to adhere to all precautionary measures, including wearing face masks.
On Tuesday, February 8, Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre said that fully vaccinated citizens and residents should consider getting a fourth Pfizer-BioNTech or Sinopharm vaccine.
In a statement, the authority said eligible people can receive a booster dose of Sinopharm or Pfizer-BioNTech based on their vaccination history and age, to enhance public safety and maintain green status on the Al Hosn app.
More than 23.7 million vaccine doses have been administered to the public since the start of inoculation in December 2020.
About 95 per cent of the UAE population is now fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
