SHARJAH: To curb the negative phenomenon of children plunging to their death from windows and balconies of highrises, Sharjah Municipality has launched a new initiative that will allow tenants of residential apartments to install translucent acrylic barriers on the balcony railings to ensure child safety.

Khalid Bin Falah Al Suwaidi, Assistant of the General Director for Client Services, explained that the new initiative would enable families, wishing to place the acrylic barriers in the balcony, to get their applications approved by the monitoring and inspection department located in Industrial Area 5.

He further said, “Owners and tenants of flats wishing to install the barrier will be asked to pay Dhs200 and should submit a request for installing the barricade, with the rent contract of the flat, and a no objection letter from the owner to install the protection barrier, in addition to a printed photo of the balcony where the barrier will be placed. They should also sign a special pledge for issuing an approval that will be followed by inspecting the balcony after the installation of the acrylic barrier, to ensure that it’s in accordance with the specified standards.”

 A slogan given to the initiative read, “My protection is your responsibility.” The initiative mainly targeted families with children.

The initiative is being held in association with the Protection and Safety Authority, Sharjah Committee for Urban Planning, Sharjah Police and Civil Defence.

Beginner Khalid Bin Saqr Al Qassimi, director of the Prevention and Safety Authority, said that the authority was always willing to launch  awareness campaigns ensuring safety of individuals. He also emphasised the importance of adhering to safety rules by parents, to avoid deaths of children from balconies.

Thabet Salem Al Turaifi, General Director of Sharjah Municipality, said that the campaign launched by the civic body in coordination with other government departments mainly aimed at creating awareness among parents to take extra care of their child’s safety by taking precautionary measures on balconies and windows of their houses. He further said, “We are aspiring to ensure Sharjah is a safe city and protect the lives of young children.

“We have set a comprehensive plan targeting most Sharjah residents and while creating awareness about the importance of protecting their children from fatal accidents. There are guidance brochures being distributed in various languages including Arabic, English and Urdu to the apartments of 3,000 buildings in Sharjah, particularly areas where highrise towers are located including Al Majaz, Abu Shaghara, Al Qassimia and Al Nahda. Additionally, we are also sending text messages to the families, and have successfully sent to more than 10,000 of them.”