Coronavirus: UAE reports 2,369 Covid-19 cases, 1,201 recoveries, 4 deaths

The UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention on Wednesday reported 2,369 cases of the Covid-19 coronavirus, along with 1,201 recoveries and four deaths.

Total active cases stand at 59,349.

The new cases were detected through 500,146 additional tests.

The total number of cases in UAE as on January 26 are 833,201, while total recoveries stand at 771,624. The death toll now stands at 2,228.

Scientists and health officials around the world are keeping their eyes on a descendant of the Omicron variant that has been found in at least 40 countries.

This version of the coronavirus, which scientists call BA.2, is widely considered stealthier than the original version of Omicron because particular genetic traits make it somewhat harder to detect. Some scientists worry it could also be more contagious.

On the other hand, pharma giant Pfizer has begun a study comparing its original Covid-19 vaccine with doses specially tweaked to match the hugely contagious Omicron variant.

Covid-19 vaccine makers have been updating their shots to better match Omicron in case global health authorities decide the change is needed.

While Omicron is more likely than previous variants to cause infection even in people who’ve been vaccinated, it’s not yet clear that a change to the vaccine recipe is needed.

Dubai's One Central Covid-19 vaccination centre will be closed from January 28. The Dubai Health Authority (DHA) announced this in a tweet on Wednesday.

The centre at the Dubai World Trade Centre could serve up to 4,000 visitors a day and vaccinated thousands of residents in one year.

Post winter break, some universities in Dubai have opened their doors for in-person learning, while other campuses are still operating virtually.

After the initial hiccup in resuming classes due to Covid-19 concerns, most institutes in the Emirate are now gradually returning to face-to-face classes bearing in mind all safety protocols.

Many universities adopted a wait-and-watch approach at the beginning of the new semester and started their distance learning programme when Covid cases surged significantly in the first few weeks of January.

ALSO READ:

• Covid in Dubai: How a machine developed in the 70s helps treat critical cases

• Covid in India: PCR test guidelines, quarantine rules for inter-state travel

• Covid-19: Britain scraps testing measures for fully vaccinated travellers from February 11

• Covid is less severe with Omicron than Delta, US study suggests

UAE is determined to take advantage of the opportunities or challenges caused by the Covid-19 pandemic in the field of education by accelerating the pace of digital transformation and reconsidering what learning is about through focusing on self-learning and advanced skills using new technologies and expanding the scope and horizons of learning, said Hussain Al Hammadi, UAE Minister of Education.

All schools across the UAE had adopted remote or online learning in 2020 following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic to control the spread of the virus and to protect the health of students, teachers and the entire school community.

• UAE