Sharjah 24 – WAM: The Emirates Red Crescent (ERC) has launched Phase II of its programme to vaccinate refugees against COVID-19 in the camps of Kurdistan, Iraq.
The programme, which will vaccinate 15,000 Syrian and Iraqi refugees, as well as provide second doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, was implemented at the directives of Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women's Union, President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, and Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation, and the "Mother of the Nation", under the supervision of Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler's Representative in Al Dhafra Region and Chairman of the ERC.
The programme is being rolled out in coordination with the Department of Health - Abu Dhabi (DoH), the UAE Consulate in Erbil and the Ministry of Health in the Kurdistan Region.
Dr. Mohammed Ateeq Al Falahi, Secretary-General of the ERC, stated that the programme, which aims to vaccinate thousands of Syrian refugees and displaced Iraqis in Kurdistan, underscores the keenness of the UAE and its leadership to support refugees and improve their health and living conditions.
The dedicated efforts of Sheikha Fatima and Sheikh Hamdan support the UAE’s goals and initiatives that aim to help refugees overcome the pandemic, he added, noting that Sheikh Hamdan personally monitors the conditions of refugees and has ordered those concerned to widen the scope of beneficiaries of the vaccination programmes in the camps of Northern Iraq.
Providing vaccines to refugees and to countries facing challenges is part of the country’s global efforts to contain the pandemic, Al Falahi further added.
He expressed the ERC’s appreciation for the untiring efforts of the Ministry of Health in Kurdistan, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and all other local and international organisations to collaborate with the ERC, the DoH and the UAE Consulate in Erbil to ensure the programme’s success.
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