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Published on : Thursday, June 25, 2020
Abu Dhabi has recently launched a hygiene strategy for its tourism sector, right before the country is preparing to open for international tourists once again after observing months of travel restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It has also started easing stay-at-home restrictions gradually, after successfully containing the spread of coronavirus infections.
All hotels and hospitality services within UAE underwent stringent sanitation from the beginning of March. These properties were allowed to reopen after receiving clearance and certification from the Department of Culture and Tourism (DCT) Abu Dhabi. The authorities issued various initiatives to address the need for elevated standards of health and safety. The ‘Go Safe Certification’ is also a part of those measures.
The hygiene certificate is a unique programme that aims to enforce global standards of safety and cleanliness at hotels, attractions, and venues across the emirate. The first hotel in UAE to receive the new certification is W Abu Dhabi – Yas Island. It will cover six additional hotels, four attractions, two theme parks, two malls and a public beach at the moment. The certificate is also ready to be spread across all attractions within the capital including malls, restaurants, theme parks and other public spaces.
As a part of the very first step of the programme, hotels and attractions will undergo guided self-assessments as per guidelines and checklists provided by DCT Abu Dhabi. It will encourage them to take responsibility for the cleanliness of their own facilities in order to carry out similar operations independently in the future. These self-assessments will be verified through detailed site-inspections conducted by dedicated teams to ensure the compliance of destinations to the highest standard of cleanliness. All destinations that meet the requirements will be awarded the Go Safe Certificate. The certificate will act as a signal to consumers to know about its readiness to receive visitors and maintain hygiene throughout.
Ali Hassan Al Shaiba, Executive Director, Tourism and Marketing, DCT Abu Dhabi said in a statement that that Abu Dhabi is setting a new standard for best practices in tourism. He said the outstanding efforts comes, following the high praise that the UAE has received for the proactive approach of the government to address the current global crisis. He shared that as the capital looks forward to revive tourism, it aims to meet as well as exceed all existing international benchmarks through a strategy that promotes consumer safety through each step, starting from their arrival at the airport to their eventual departure. He mentioned that the launch of the hygiene certificate goes hand-in-hand with the efforts of the Abu Dhabi government to combat the spread of diseases including widespread testing, city-wide sanitation, social distancing, and enhancing healthcare services.