Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Health Ministers announced on Wednesday taking new precautionary measures at the GCC border crossings to prevent coronavirus.
This will take place in implementation of the International Health Regulations (2005) approved by the World Health Organization and the unified health procedures guide (UHPG) at the GCC member states' border crossings, which was endorsed by the Supreme Council of the GCC at the 39th Summit in Riyadh in December 2018.
The announcement came during an emergency meeting held by GCC Health Ministers at the Secretariat General, under chairmanship of UAE Health Minister Abdulrahman Al-Owais to discuss recent coronavirus developments and means to unify GCC efforts to combat it.
The ministers tasked the specialized committees operating in this field with following up the developments in this matter and sharing information amongst GCC members.
They lauded the efforts made by China over the matter, expressing their full solidarity with it.
During the meeting, the ministers also thanked the United Arab Emirates for evacuation of many nationals of Arab countries and transporting them to their countries, after taking all necessary medical measurements.
Meanwhile, Owais thanked the GCC ministers for their interaction and rapid response to attend the meeting on the coronavirus, upon an invitation by the Secretariat General.
He also affirmed that the common goal is to continue coordinating positions and promoting cooperation to combat epidemics, mainly the new coronavirus, through concerted efforts, expertise sharing, the readiness of the GCC states and coordination with the WHO in line with international health regulations.
