The GCC Undersecretaries of Health Ministries held today (Monday) their sixteenth virtual meeting to discuss the latest developments of the corona virus (COVID-19) at the GCC countries.

H.E.  Dr. Mohammed bin Saif Al-Hosni, MOH’s Undersecretary for Health Affairs participated in meeting with the attendance a number of MOH’s senior officials.

The meeting addressed the latest updates of the coronavirus in the GCC countries and actions taken by each country to combat the third wave of pandemic experienced by all countries in the region. It further reviewed proposals presented for upcoming phase and updates of COVID-19 vaccines and distribution mechanisms of each country and experience, in addition to the importance of exchanging information in vaccinations domain.

Moreover, the meeting discussed updates of the health passport project that aims at unifying cross-boarders procedures and reducing the entrance of positive COVID-19 cases into the GCC countries. Quality code was further agreed on to ensure the credibility of certificates issued by each country.  

Immunization and challenges encountered by most the GCC countries regarding vaccines shortages were highlighted, in addition to discussing the monitoring mechanism and approaches concerning side effects of the current used vaccines. Unification of media messages was touched upon during the meeting.

Their Excellencies GCC Health Undersecretaries commended the significant efforts of health workers as well their tangible contribution in mitigating the spread of the virus. They further valued the cooperation of citizens and official and non-governmental authorities amid these exceptional circumstances.  

The Undersecretaries urge all GCC citizens and residents to adhere fully to the preventive measures as wearing masks, avoiding gatherings, maintaining physical distance and hand hygiene. They further stressed the importance of taking the information from reliable sources and not to pay attention to rumors and unofficial social media platforms.