The Dubai Economy has shut down 11 commercial establishments and fined 252 others for flouting with COVID-19 restrictions. 

At least 61 other businesses also received a warning during inspections conducted in March by the government agency’s Commercial Compliance and Consumer Protection (CCCP) sector. 

The shops were mostly found violating regulations regarding the wearing of face masks and social distancing. 

The government has beefed up the enforcement of COVID-19 regulations following the surge of infections.  The Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) reported 2,012 new coronavirus cases for the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of infections in the UAE to nearly half a million, or 472,148. 

Despite the high number of violators, the majority of business establishments in Dubai have complied with the protocols, according to Dubai Economy. 

“Dubai Economy has intensified our inspections and in March, we saw that 16,475 stores across the emirate fully complied with the precautionary guidelines,” said Abdul Aziz Tannak, director of commercial control in Dubai Economy. 

“It represents an exceptional 98.1 percent commitment overall to preventing COVID-19,” he added. 

(Writing by Cleofe Maceda; editing by Seban Scaria) 

Cleofe.maceda@refinitiv.com

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