Another 1,285 cases of Covid-19 were reported throughout the Emirates on Wednesday, taking the number of infections to 171,434 since January. It was the 44th consecutive day that the country recorded more than 1,000 new cases. Wednesday's cases were detected after a further 136,483 tests were carried out. The country often carries out more than 100,000 tests each day, with certain professions requiring weekly testing. Since the outbreak, about 17 million tests have been carried out in one of the largest screening programmes per capita worldwide. On Wednesday, authorities said 713 patients were cleared of Covid-19, which means 156,380 people have recovered in the UAE to date. More than 91 per cent of all cases in the Emirates have ended in recovery. Officials said four patients died of related complications, raising the death toll to 580. The number of active stands at 14,474 – a figure last recorded in mid-June after the country was recovering from a high of 17,173 active cases. The number of active cases has increased by about 13,000 since November 4, when fewer than 2,000 people were battling Covid-19. During the country's regular briefing this week, officials said the UAE had one of the lowest infection rates compared with the volume of testing. Dr Omar Al Hammadi, spokesman for the briefing, said only 1 per cent of all tests conducted resulted in a positive result, which is lower than all of the EU, the Mena region and countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. He said the death rate in the UAE (0.3 per cent) was also significantly lower than in other parts of the world. With the National Day long weekend under way, officials reminded the public to adhere to safety measures and avoid gathering. Dr Al Hammadi said that wearing a face mask and physically distancing were key to avoiding infection. He said the priority for the UAE – and the rest of the world – was to develop and secure a safe and effective vaccine and to prevent further infections. "Wearing a mask and maintaining physical distancing is paramount to protect ourselves from the virus but the vaccine will be our weapon to fight it head on," Dr Al Hammadi said.
