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Mawani, MoH Sign Deal to Boost Public Health Risk Mitigation

Mawani, MoH Sign Deal to Boost Public Health Risk Mitigation
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Mawani, MoH Sign Deal to Boost Public Health Risk Mitigation

Mawani, MoH Sign Deal to Boost Public Health Risk Mitigation

Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani) and the Saudi Ministry of Health signed a partnership agreement to enhance the implementation of global health regulations.

This collaboration aims to strengthen public health risk prevention efforts.

The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the Global Health Exhibition, held from October 29-31 under the theme 'Invest in Health' at the Roshn Front Exhibition and Convention Center in Riyadh, SPA reported. The event was attended by officials, investors, healthcare executives, and experts.
Mawani's Vice President for Policies and Legislations, Capt. Yousef Alhosan, and the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health for Public Health, Dr. Hani Joukhadar, co-signed the agreement.
This partnership underscores mutual efforts to maintain maritime safety and ensure port security by monitoring health risks on ships entering the Kingdom's hubs. It will also adopt preventive measures, provide world-class health services to maritime crews and passengers, and streamline vessel clearance procedures.
The partnership will also enhance cooperation between the two entities in implementing global health regulations at Saudi ports. This includes health inspections, issuing or renewing health certificates for vessels, providing health services, and ensuring that health centers at ports are equipped to issue health check certificates. It also includes exemption from health check certificates for ships and strengthening preparedness and response to public health emergencies at ports.

The agreement extends to preventive health measures for passengers and maritime crews through medical screening and testing. It ensures easy access to health services, offers ambulance and medical transportation services, safeguards environmental safety at passenger terminals, and ensures they are free from public health hazards.

The partnership also monitors the spread of communicable diseases at ports and surrounding areas and implements infection control measures while assessing their effectiveness.

Furthermore, the agreement enables the examination of vessels arriving from global destinations to ensure they are free of public health risks. This includes reviewing the ship's health documents, implementing health inspections, supervising health measures, laying preventive plans, and setting communication strategies between port stakeholders to exchange information, report public health hazards, and implement corrective actions.

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EU Gas Storage Near Full as Bloc Prepares for Winter

A view shows gas wells at Bovanenkovo gas field owned by Gazprom on the Arctic Yamal peninsula, Russia May 21, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov
A view shows gas wells at Bovanenkovo gas field owned by Gazprom on the Arctic Yamal peninsula, Russia May 21, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov
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EU Gas Storage Near Full as Bloc Prepares for Winter

A view shows gas wells at Bovanenkovo gas field owned by Gazprom on the Arctic Yamal peninsula, Russia May 21, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov
A view shows gas wells at Bovanenkovo gas field owned by Gazprom on the Arctic Yamal peninsula, Russia May 21, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

European Union countries have nearly filled their gas storage as the bloc readies for winter and the potential stoppage of Russian gas deliveries via Ukraine, data showed on Wednesday.

Gas storage facilities across the 27-country EU are 90% full, marking the second year running in which the bloc has hit its 90% filling target in August - well in advance of a November deadline, the European Commission said.

Germany, which has the biggest storage caverns of any EU country, has filled them to 93% of capacity. Most EU members with storage sites have filled them to above 90%, data from Gas Infrastructure Europe showed.

According to Reuters, Russia used to supply around 40% of the EU's gas before the 2022 Ukraine war, after which Russian deliveries plunged and Europe raced to replace reliance on Moscow with more gas from countries including Norway and the US.

Europe faces a potential further loss of Russian gas this winter, as a transit agreement to deliver Russian gas to Europe via Ukraine is due to expire at the end of the year.

The EU has said it will not pressure Ukraine to extend this agreement, and has said countries can do without these deliveries, which totalled around 15 billion cubic metres (bcm) in 2023, out of total EU gas consumption of 295 bcm.

Europe's last winter was usually mild and had low energy demand, which left storage relatively full earlier this year, reducing the task of refilling depleted caverns during summer. Stored gas is called on during Europe's coldest months when demand for heating peaks.

"It's a combination of a very significantly higher starting point of storage and lower demand," Jacob Mandel, senior associate at Aurora Energy Research, said of current storage levels.

The GIE data showed a very different situation in Ukraine, where gas storage is just 23% full.

Mandel said the risks caused by the war and the high cost for Ukrainian companies to import gas have curbed the country's ability to build up storage reserves.

Ukrainian energy facilities have also come under nearly daily bombardment in recent months, causing blackouts, as the war grinds on following Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.

EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson called on Wednesday for Europe to provide the necessary support to Ukraine's energy system to help the country prepare for a "tough" winter.