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Madinah Residents Use Apps to Order Daily Needs Under Lockdown

Charities prepare food baskets to those in need in Madinah, Saudi Arabia. (SPA)
Charities prepare food baskets to those in need in Madinah, Saudi Arabia. (SPA)
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Madinah Residents Use Apps to Order Daily Needs Under Lockdown

Charities prepare food baskets to those in need in Madinah, Saudi Arabia. (SPA)
Charities prepare food baskets to those in need in Madinah, Saudi Arabia. (SPA)

The Saudi Health Ministry has stepped up its patrolling of Madinah neighborhoods after the imposition of a 24-hour curfew meant to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Security agencies and Health Ministry teams are working together to impose the curfew and provide health assistance in Madinah’s six neighborhoods, including monitoring of entry gates and deploying civil teams within the designated localities.

Charities, in cooperation with the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development, continued to distribute goods baskets to families in need. Health preventative measures are taken by volunteers.

“This decision was taken for our safety, and our commitment to it will make it easier for the security and health authorities to work, which will help end this crisis,” said Meshaal Al-Tohamy, a resident of one of the isolated neighborhoods, of the lockdown.

Al-Tohamy added that there is no shortage of food essentials, given that the public has access to several electronic applications that have facilitated the ordering of all daily needs.

On Friday Saudi Arabia’s Interior Ministry announced a lockdown in six Madinah neighborhoods to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

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COP29 - How Does $300 Billion Stack up?

A demonstrator sitting on the ground holds a poster during a climate protest in Lisbon, to coincide with the closing of the COP29 Climate Summit Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. (AP)
A demonstrator sitting on the ground holds a poster during a climate protest in Lisbon, to coincide with the closing of the COP29 Climate Summit Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. (AP)
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COP29 - How Does $300 Billion Stack up?

A demonstrator sitting on the ground holds a poster during a climate protest in Lisbon, to coincide with the closing of the COP29 Climate Summit Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. (AP)
A demonstrator sitting on the ground holds a poster during a climate protest in Lisbon, to coincide with the closing of the COP29 Climate Summit Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. (AP)

Countries agreed at the UN's COP29 climate conference to spend $300 billion on annual climate finance. Here are some ways of understanding what that sum is worth:

MILITARY MIGHT

In 2023, governments around the globe spent $6.7 billion a day on military expenditure, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

That means the $300 billion annual climate finance target equates to 45 days of global military spending.

BURNING OIL

$300 billion is currently the price tag for all the crude oil used by the world in a little over 40 days, according to Reuters calculations based on global crude oil demand of approximately 100 million barrels/day and end-November Brent crude oil prices.

ELON MUSK

According to Forbes, Elon Musk's net worth stood at $321.7 billion in late November. The world's richest man and owner of social media platform X has co-founded more than half a dozen companies, including electric car maker Tesla and rocket producer SpaceX.

STORM DAMAGE

Hurricane Katrina, one of the most devastating and deadliest cyclones in US history, caused $200 billion in damage alone in 2005.

This year's climate-fueled Hurricane Helene could end up costing up to $250 billion in economic losses and damages in the US, according to estimates by AccuWeather. While preliminary estimates by Morningstar DBRS suggest Hurricane Milton, also supercharged by ocean heat, could cost both the insured and uninsured nearly $100 billion.

BEAUTY BUYS

The global luxury goods market is valued at 363 billion euros ($378 billion) in 2024, according to Bain & Company.

COPPER PLATED

The GDP of Chile - the world's largest copper producing country - stood at $335.5 billion in 2023, according to World Bank data.

GREECE'S BAIL OUT

Euro zone countries and the International Monetary Fund spent some 260 billion euros ($271 billion) between 2010 and 2018 on bailing out Greece - the biggest sovereign bailout in economic history.

BRITISH BONDS

Britain's new government needs to borrow more to fund budget plans. Gilt issuance is expected to rise to 296.9 billion pounds ($372.05 billion) for the current financial year.

TECH TALLY

A 10% share of tech giant Microsoft is worth just over $300 billion, according to LSEG data. Meanwhile the market cap for US oil major Chevron stood at $292 billion.

CRYPTO

The annual climate finance target amounts to 75% of the total value of the global market for crypto currency Ether, the world's second-largest cryptocurrency.

Alternatively, 3 million Bitcoin would cover the annual climate finance target as the world's largest cryptocurrency closes in on the $100,000 mark following a rally fueled by Donald Trump winning the Nov. 5 US presidential election.