Qatar has done well by maintaining one of the lowest Covid-19 death rates in the world, besides registering a fall in the number of hospital admissions and a decrease in the number of daily cases in the last few weeks.
At the peak of the coronavirus early this month, Qatar had seen more than 3,600 new confirmed cases a day, but for the past few days the number has constantly remained under 2,000, thanks to effective mitigation strategy being pursued by our health authorities.
Besides the high vaccination rate, the community’s support in adhering to government restrictions and standard Covid-19 precautions has played a significant role in reaching a plateau of new daily cases.
Therefore, the easing of some Covid-19 restrictions in Qatar began yesterday, as announced by the Cabinet recently.
Under this, children and unvaccinated people are allowed in malls, libraries and other places, while kids will also be permitted to enter mosques.
The Cabinet decision however, requires people to wear masks in all open and closed public places, with the exception of those who practise sports in open places.
All citizens, residents and visitors should also activate the Ehteraz application on smartphones when leaving the house for any reason.
Further, they are all required to follow the rule on the number of people allowed in a vehicle.
According to the World Health Organisation, Omicron is the latest variant of concern and less severe than Delta, but is still a dangerous virus.
People who are infected with Omicron have the full spectrum of disease, everything from asymptomatic infection all the way through severe disease and death.
What we are learning is that people with underlying conditions, of old age, and who are unvaccinated can have a severe form of Covid-19 following Omicron infection.
People are still being hospitalised with this variant as well as dying. So, it is important that we have information that is accurate.
While it is less severe than Delta, Omicron is not mild either.
Omicron is overtaking Delta in terms of circulation, and it is increasingly transmitted between people. It doesn’t mean that everybody will eventually get Omicron, but we certainly are seeing high cases and surge in cases around the world.
This is putting a significant burden on our health care systems, which are already significantly overburdened given that we are entering into the third year of this pandemic.
That’s why WHO is working with partners around the world to have a comprehensive strategy to reduce one’s exposure and reduce the chances for one to get infected.
First and foremost, we have seen that vaccination is incredibly protective against severe disease and death, and also prevents some infections and onward transmission.
The Covid-19 pandemic has been an unprecedented crisis of solidarity that has exposed and exacerbated fundamental weaknesses in the global health architecture.
But at the same time, it has also strengthened our belief that no country will be safe from health emergencies until all are safe.
Truly, health and preparedness are everyone’s business, both at a national and a global level.