DUBAI, Dr. Abdul Rahman bin Mohammad bin Nasser Al Owais, Minister of Health and Prevention, recently held a series of virtual and physical meetings with several foreign ministers and ambassadors.
The meetings discussed ways to enhance cooperation, exchange of expertise and experience in health areas, and emphasise the UAE’s keenness to play a pivotal role in supporting the international efforts to counter COVID-19, provide safe and effective supplies, treatment, and vaccines, ensure equitable access to them, accelerate the recovery process and support the objectives of sustainable healthcare development.
Jaan Reinhold, Ambassador of Estonia to the UAE, was the first official to meet with the UAE minister.
The two sides discussed ways of fostering cooperation in managing health data, as part of the World Health Organisation’s project and other global partners to build a global and reliable solution to manage the vaccination campaign.
In another meeting, Al Owais discussed with Avni Arifi, Ambassador of Kosovo to the UAE, the means to enhance bilateral relations in healthcare.
Al Owais also received a phone call from Armindo Daniel Tiago, Minister of Health of Mozambique, during which the two sides agreed on the need to exchange experiences on the COVID-19 vaccine. The Mozambican Minister expressed his country’s interest in learning about the UAE’s experience in curbing the spread of the pandemic and the national vaccination programme.
In his meeting with Kwon Yongwoo, Ambassador of South Korea to the UAE, Al Owais discussed bilateral cooperation in the health sector, highlighting the need to make the most of the latest health technology solutions.
The UAE minister also met with Shaukat Ali Soudhan, Ambassador of Mauritius to the UAE, to discuss ways of developing the UAE-Mauritius relations, exchanging medical expertise and enhancing cooperation between health institutions in both countries. Meanwhile, he discussed with Hussain Bajis, Ambassador of Indonesia to the UAE, avenues of cooperation on health, especially on mechanisms to limit the outbreak of COVID-19 in addition to issues related to vaccination and diagnosis.
Bakhtiar Khaderovic Ibrahimov, Ambassador of Uzbekistan to the UAE, was among those who met Al Owais. Both sides highlighted the importance of developing bilateral relations in healthcare, enhancing cooperation between medical institutions of both countries, and exchanging expertise to confront the pandemic.
Al Owais also received Zvi Heifetz, Israel’s special envoy to the GCC, and the accompanying delegation. The meeting touched on ways of strengthening bilateral relations based on the UAE-Israel health cooperation agreement, which will boost cooperation between both countries especially in combating global pandemics, protecting medical data, digital health, artificial intelligence, innovation and personalised medicine. Both sides agreed on the need to exchange expertise in the field of vaccination especially in light of the UAE’s production of the “Hayat-Fax” vaccine.
“The UAE is at the forefront of world countries in dealing with COVID-19 pandemic, thanks to the forward-looking vision of the UAE aiming to enhance national resilience, achieve business continuity, and advance the healthcare system,” Al Owais said.
Source: Emirates News Agency