*Only food stores, pharmacies and restaurants will remain open on Fridays and Saturdays

The Cabinet on Wednesday decided to close shops and stop all commercial activities on Fridays and Saturdays of each week, with the exception of food and catering outlets, pharmacies and restaurants that serve external orders, until further notice.
Any exemption to this decision will be issued by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI).
The measure was taken in order to complete the decisions and actions previously taken to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus and protect the citizens and the residents, HE the Minister of Justice and Acting Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Dr Issa bin Saad al-Jafali al-Nuaimi said in a statement to the official Qatar News Agency (QNA).
This and the other decisions were taken at the Cabinet meeting chaired by HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz al-Thani through video conference.
At the beginning of the meeting, the Cabinet heard the explanation given by HE the Minister of Public Health on the latest developments to reduce the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19). The Cabinet praised the efforts made by the Ministry of Public Health and all its employees, including officials, doctors, medical personnel and workers, as well as the efforts of the relevant ministries, institutions and state agencies that have been playing their role effectively and responsibly, to protect citizens and residents from the coronavirus.
The Cabinet has called upon citizens and residents to stay in their homes and not to go out except in necessary cases.
Also, the Cabinet considered the other topics on the agenda as follows: First - Taking the necessary measures to issue a draft law organising medical treatment abroad, after it reviewed the recommendation of the Shura Council on the draft law.
Second - Approving: 1- A draft agreement on exemption from visa requirements for holders of diplomatic and private passports and service between the governments of Qatar and Turkmenistan.
2 - A draft memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the legal field between Qatar's Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Justice of the Kyrgyz Republic.
3- A draft memorandum of understanding in the field of commerce between the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in Qatar and the Ministry of Trade and Integration of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
4- A draft memorandum of understanding between Qatar's Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Tajikistan.
Third - The Cabinet reviewed the report of the Standing Committee of Water Resources on its work during the period from 30/6/2018 to 31/12/2019, and took the appropriate decision in this regard.
The committee is concerned with proposing policies and strategies related to water resources, approving plans, programmes and projects related to the management and development of water resources, and setting priorities for water resources development projects, and follow up the implementation of programmes and projects related to water resources and propose appropriate solutions to address wastage of water.
The report indicated that the committee discussed a number of topics, including water resources policy and the modernisation and development of the national water resources strategy.

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