Sharjah 24: In order to carry out His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohamed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, visions and directives to place health at the forefront of the emirate's development projects agenda and to improve the community's quality of life, Sharjah Municipality (SM) announced the submission of 27 initiatives to support the requirements for “Sharjah a healthy City” title.

In this regard, Thabet Al Tarifi, Director General of Sharjah Municipality, stated that Sharjah is a model for healthy cities as a result of His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah's visions, directives, and support, which helped the city earn the title of the first healthy city in the Middle East and North Africa, and made it a role model in providing the elements of a healthy life for the public.

He congratulated the Sharjah Health Authority and the Executive Committee for their outstanding efforts in executing all of the file’s requirements connected to expanding the reach of healthy cities and implementing the programme’s objectives in collaboration with the emirate’s responsible agencies.

According to Al Tarifi, these entities have considered Mweileh commercial and residential suburb as a model for implementing the programme, with the municipality presenting 27 initiatives that include, among other things, work on cultivating green spaces and recycling, as well as providing initiatives that support the environmental axis, such as a green office competition and environment-related initiatives.

Sheikha Shatha Al Mualla, Assistant Director-General of the Public Health Sector and Central Laboratories, stated that the municipality enforces health and food market legislation and control laws through the Food Control Department's inspection procedures at retail outlets, import and export terminals, and food processing at all stages. Food control has increased since the start of the Covid-19 epidemic to ensure that food companies commit to the preventive measures put in place by health officials to prevent the spread of the virus.

She noted that the municipality has implemented a decision requiring all companies distributing and producing bottled drinking water in the Emirate of Sharjah to have their products tested in a food laboratory on a regular basis to ensure that they meet UAE standard specifications using approved examination methods. The Sharjah Food Safety Programme has been mandated by the municipality for all food enterprises.

"The Healthy Cities Programme” is one of the preventative programmes used to promote health," Al Mualla said. "It is founded on the idea that enhancing health aspects may be achieved if the environmental, social, and economic factors impacting health are improved."