Saudi Arabia faces the Coronavirus

Saudi Arabia issues strong decisions coming into force to tackle the Coronavirus

On Sunday evening, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia announced the suspension of attendance at work places in all government agencies for a period of (16) days, except for the health, security, and military sectors, the e-security center, and the distance education system in the education sector.

The statement of the Saudi government stated that the implementation of these decisions starts from Monday 16 March 2020.

It was also decided to close the closed and open commercial markets and complexes except pharmacies and food ration activities such as food rations, supermarkets, hypermarkets and the like, and this procedure does not include shops located on the commercial streets, provided that they are not within commercial complexes, and the closing of men's barber shops and women's beauty salons.

The decisions also stated, "The service is limited to places where food and beverages are provided, and the like, only for external requests, and customers are not allowed to sit at the designated service tables inside the shops."

It also included "prohibiting gatherings in public places designated for hiking, such as parks, beaches, resorts, camps, wild parks and the like."

It was also decided to temporarily suspend all auction and forestry activities and temporarily close its gathering sites, and to limit the presence of the public and beneficiaries in government departments by promoting electronic transactions and activating electronic service delivery platforms remotely, in the service sectors of all government and private agencies, and restricting commercial dealings with companies and their representatives through Electronic and telephone communication as possible.

The Saudi government urged to encourage companies, private institutions and charitable societies to reduce the number of employees and workers attending to workplaces and to promote electronic work remotely through the available electronic means while continuing the basic and sensitive work of the security and health sectors.

It also obligated all companies and institutions to apply the home quarantine for a period of 14 days from the date of arrival for all expatriate workers from outside the Kingdom before starting their work, as well as those who show respiratory symptoms from the existing labor during the current situation.

Image source: Reuters