Combating COVID-19 Pandemic in West Asian Countries, Taking the United Arab Emirates (UAE), as a Success Story

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) became the first state in the region to record a positive case, and the number of cases started growing in succeeding days. In return, the UAE government adopted tough measures to enforce isolation or quarantine. On 26 March, 64 people were referred to prosecution for violating quarantine instructions. The government has categorized the list of essential services to allow free movement of employees in sectors such as banking and financial services; civil aviation; construction; education; energy; government media; health and pharmacies; law enforcement and armed forces; postal service, shipping, and logistics; telecommunications. The purpose of this paper is to provide information on how the UAE Government handled the pandemic since its spread, by shedding light on the governmental efforts to contain the spread and to maintain continuity of businesses and education. In summary, the methods used comprise, swift reaction to curb, contain the pandemic, and develop massive national policies and plans. The UAE employed varied mechanisms and procedures in its comprehensive response to manage the crisis and demonstrate the flexibility of institutions and the ability of authorities to do effective and efficient management, which operates at various levels.