SaqrGhobash, Speaker of the Federal National Council (FNC) recently addressed the 5th World Conference of Speakers of Parliament held by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the United Nations. The conference took place under the theme, "The Leading Role that Parliaments can achieve in Global Rebuilding following the COVID-19 Pandemic."

In his speech, SaqrGhobash urged the parliaments of countries across the world to cooperate with governments in efforts to recover from the impact of Coronavirus pandemic. He also called on the parliaments to initiate efforts to solve the problems faced by global communities in various areas of sustainable development, geopolitical tensions, terrorism, extremism and other humanitarian crises.

In view of the unprecedented repercussions caused by the pandemic crisis, there is a need to develop parliamentary work at a global level. One of the first lessons that the pandemic has taught us is that the world should work as one human family noting that such crises do not discriminate over geographical borders, politics, religion, ethnicities, economics or culture, and this calls for utmost solidarity and cooperation among world governments.

Adding that Parliaments and the IPU have the responsibility to coordinate the actions of world governments and international organisations to ensure fair and equal access to upcoming COVID-19 vaccines, Ghobash stressed that the under the leadership of President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE has handled the pandemic crisis with professionalism. He highlighted that the UAE launched various effective strategies which included formulating proactive action plans and utilising smart and innovative solutions in key areas of health, education, economy and labour among other sectors to mitigate the impact of Coronavirus pandemic across the region.

Significantly, the UAE has emerged as a leader across the globe in terms of COVID-19 testing for citizens and residents. He said that the Emirati authorities have installed more than 14 drive-through testing centres across the country and has provided medical insurance to citizens in need, adding that approximately 15,000 volunteers, which include both citizens and residents, have expressed keenness towards participating in phase III clinical trials of the Coronavirus vaccine.

At the same time, a remote learning system has been adopted by the UAE who has more than 1.2 million public and private school students participating in the process.

Talking about the business sector, SaqrGhobash pointed out that the UAE’s federal government has provided aid and support to various businesses affected due to the pandemic, along with incentive plans valued at AED70 billion. Local governments also initiated several support plans and incentives to assist local businesses, in addition to exempting residents from paying fines related to expired residency permits.

Intensifying efforts to boost the process of post-pandemic recovery, the UAE has launched a national strategy to support the process. He added that the strategy is based on a framework that will help in foreseeing future opportunities and challenges in various sectors across the nation It will further ensure the readiness of public and private sectors in the country and will enhance economic efficiency through 33 initiatives.

In conclusion, Ghobash affirmed that despite the Coronavirus pandemic and its global implications, the UAE is committed to its international humanitarian mission, noting that it has provided essential medical aid to more than 64 countries across the world to support their efforts in tackling the impact of the health crisis.

WAM