Health is the UAE's topmost priority: Sheikh Mohammed

Dubai - Sheikh Mohammed issued a raft of new decisions while chairing the first cabinet meeting held in 2021.

Health is the UAE’s topmost priority, and the nation will fast recover from the pandemic and grow stronger, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, said on Sunday.

Sheikh Mohammed issued a raft of new decisions while chairing the first cabinet meeting held in 2021. He took to Twitter to promise that the process of national recovery will continue and “the UAE will be more powerful by the end of this year”.

Sheikh Mohammed also approved the appointment of a new Director-General for the Dubai Health Authority (DHA). Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid, Crown Prince of Dubai, said Awad Sagheer Al Katbi has been appointed to the post. The Crown Prince also paid tribute to the outgoing DHA chief Humaid Al Qatami.

During the cabinet meeting, Sheikh Mohammed approved a decision to promote a circular economy that would establish sustainability across different sectors, adding that a new federal council has been established to implement the policy.

“The goal is clean production...sustainable transportation...sustainable consumption...and efficient waste management...in a way that preserves the environment and generates new economic opportunities,” he tweeted.

Sheikh Mohammed also announced the approval of a new debt strategy that would support the financial and banking sectors of the country.

An Emirates Tourism Council was also established to further boost the country’s domestic tourism campaign. He said the country-wide campaign called the ‘Most Beautiful Winter’ highlighted the benefits of a national marketing strategy. The VP said the goal is to support the youth to benefit from tourism opportunities in all the emirates of the country.

He noted that the UAE is ranked 18th globally in the indicators of Soft Power, and number 11 in effectiveness.

He said the UAE is one of the most active countries in the world. The country aims to communicate with all people around the world to share the Emirati story with a new and effective media strategy.

The Cabinet approved establishing an embassy in the city of Tel Aviv in Israel, the UAE government said on its Twitter account. The UAE and Israel normalised relations in September last year after signing the Abraham Accords.