MOH News

MOH: Kingdom Records Significant Decline in Number of COVID-19 Cases
03 October 2021

MOH spokesman, Dr. Muhammad Al-Abdulaali, said that the pandemic indicators in the Kingdom and the world continue to decline. The Kingdom recorded a noticeable decrease in the number of COVID-19 cases. Additionally, over 42 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine were given to people in the Kingdom. More than 18.8 million people were vaccinated (two doses). 

Al-Bahah region has the lion’s share of the number of people given the two doses of the vaccine. 68.6% of its population was vaccinated followed by 68.3% in Riyadh, 66.58% in the Eastern Province 60.1% in Makkah, 58.1% in Asir, 57.7% in Qassim, 56.1% in Jazan, 55.9% in Tabuk, 53.4% in Hail, 52.9% in the Northern Borders, 52.4% in Madinah, 51.6% in Najran and 51.5% in Al-Jawf. 

The percentages of vaccinated individuals in all regions witnessed a noticeable increase last week. Three regions had over 65% of their population vaccinated with the two doses: They are Al-Bahah, Riyadh, and the Eastern Province. The MOH spokesman urged everyone to take the two doses of the vaccine, noting that the current situation and studies indicate that current COVID-19 cases, including those in ICU, were people who did not take the two doses of the vaccine.  

Dr. Al-Abdulaali shed light on the previously released statement about requiring people to take the two doses of the vaccine to enter several facilities and participate in activities. The vaccination is the only means of protecting society, as recovering from infection alone is not enough, and taking one dose is also not enough to deal with virus variants. 

He mentioned that new updates will be made to (Tawakkalna) application in terms of health status. Starting from October 10th, the (vaccinated) status will only be available to those who have taken the two doses of the vaccine. Noteworthy, the seasonal influenza vaccine does not conflict with the COVID-19 vaccine.

Al-Abdulaali revealed that 41 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the Kingdom, bringing the total cases to 547,262.  There are 2,208 active cases and 181 critical cases. 

The MOH spokesman made this statement in the COVID-19 briefing held on Sunday with the participation of the official spokesman of Hajj and Umrah Ministry, Hisham Abdul-Mon’em Saeed. 
Al-Abdulaali mentioned that 49 COVID-19 recoveries were reported, bringing the total number of recoveries 536,330 to date. And 2 new mortalities were reported, bringing the total number of mortalities to 8,724. 

Hisham Abdul-Mon’em Saeed said that the regulations and procedures of the Umrah model, which will be launched on 17 Safar 1443AH, are based on several aspects. They are: Planning, mechanisms of regulation, movement and crowd management, service centers and infrastructure, and media and awareness. Launching this model will take place with the participation of the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah and the Ministry of Interior, represented by the Special Forces for Hajj and Umrah Security, and several government agencies. Saeed praised the role the General Presidency of the Grand Mosque and the Prophet's Mosque plays by Managing the crowd system process inside the courtyards of the two holy mosques.

 “The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has established four main service and infrastructure centers to receive, gather, and transport pilgrims safely in accordance with their time periods,” he said.  
The ministry has also paid special attention to educating pilgrims on the importance of adhering to the precautionary measures and completing the vaccination process, as well as other documents, regulations and legislation previously announced with the aim of preserving human health and limiting the spread of COVID-19.

When the “safe Umrah” model was first launched, 6,000 pilgrims were received daily, and the number grew to 70,000. Mechanisms and plans were also developed to increase the absorptive capacity in the period ahead, in coordination and cooperation with all parties involved in serving the pilgrims. To this day no COVID-19 cases were recorded among pilgrims.

Regarding some of the most prominent accomplishments of the “safe Umrah” model, Saeed explained that until last month, over 21,000 Umrah visas were provided for individuals coming from outside the Kingdom. This is proof that there is a significant increase in demand. Meanwhile, all the procedures set by the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah to preserve the health of pilgrims are followed.

He went on to explain that one of the qualitative initiatives that the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah took was establishing comprehensive service centers known as “care centers”. They have served more than 21,000 beneficiaries (pilgrims) and provided them with all kinds of assistance while they were in Makkah and Madinah.  Since the launch of the “safe Umrah” model, more than 10 million pilgrims were able to perform Umrah with ease while staying safe from COVID-19. The total number of permits granted to pilgrims, visitors, and worshipers exceeded 30 million.





Last Update : 06 October 2021 02:34 PM
Reading times :