Saudi Arabia clarifies on COVID-19 vaccination for travellers

RIYADH: Health authorities in Saudi Arabia on Saturday clarified on any condition of getting a COVID-19 vaccine for travellers, saying that there is no such restriction on passengers leaving the kingdom.

A spokesman for the Saudi Ministry of Health (MOH), said that there was no restriction on people travelling out of the kingdom to get COVID-19 vaccination.

Speaking to local media, the spokesman said that there was no such restriction so far and the travellers would be updated in case any country imposes such condition for the passengers.

“We have so far not devised any SOPs in this regard,” he was quoted as saying by the local media.

The health ministry spokesman said that they were increasing the number of centres for COVID-19 vaccination in the kingdom so that people could be served in a better way. “A COVID-19 vaccine centre will be opened in Makkah and Madina in next couple of days,” the Saudi official said.

It is pertinent to mention here that Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has received his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine on December 26, as part of a national COVID-19 vaccination plan being implemented by the ministry of health, state news agency SPA reported.

Minister of Health, Tawfiq Al-Rabiah, thanked the crown prince for “his keenness and continuous follow-up to provide vaccines to citizens and residents.”

“What we are seeing today regarding the gains that have been achieved by the Kingdom since the beginning of the pandemic are an extension of one of the most important policies within Vision 2030 that prevention is better than cure,” Al-Rabiah said.

Over 500,000 people have already registered to take the COVID-19 vaccine in Saudi Arabia since its launch last Tuesday, the Ministry of Health said.