The Coronavirus Information Service is an automated “chatbot” service that allows citizens and residents in Qatar to get answers to the most common questions about Coronavirus from the Ministry of Public Health and the GCO 24 hours a day in six languages: Arabic, English, Urdu, Hindi, Nepali, and Malayalam. The service will provide information on topics such as Coronavirus prevention and symptoms, the latest number of cases, advice on staying at home, travel advice and mythbusting.
.@GCOQatar launches a new Coronavirus Information Service now available on WhatsApp. The free service is available in 6 languages and includes the latest statistics & health advice: https://t.co/IW2E1F6iio
— مكتب الاتصال الحكومي (@GCOQatar) April 6, 2020
To use the free WhatsApp service, follow: https://t.co/2MgWrHRPS7 pic.twitter.com/Xtv5vXLOBF
To use the free Coronavirus Information Service on WhatsApp, one need to save the number +974 6006 0601 in the phone contacts, then send a WhatsApp message in any language to get started. The conversation can also be started via this link.
“Maintaining the safety of citizens and residents in Qatar is our top priority. To ensure that the public is kept informed during the crisis, we have developed a user-friendly service to give people instant access the most current information on the virus. This includes the latest statistics from the Ministry of Public Health and vital information about how people can protect themselves and others. Our aim is to raise public awareness in our community, ” said Sheikh Thamer bin Hamad Al-Thani, Deputy Director of the Government Communications Office for Media Affairs.
Matt Idema, WhatsApp’s Chief Operating Officer, commented: “At difficult times like these, people use WhatsApp more than ever to connect with and support their friends, family and communities. We are pleased to be able to provide the State of Qatar with the communications tools to help them respond to citizens’ questions about the virus with reliable, timely health advice, in order to keep people safe.”
The Coronavirus Information Service has been built on the WhatsApp Business API over Infobip’s global communication platform to provide timely and critical information to the population about the virus. For more advanced queries, the chatbot can also direct users to online resources.
