MANILA, Philippines — A Filipino in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been infected with the novel coronavirus acute respiratory disease (2019-nCoV ARD) and is now under observation, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed Saturday.
The DFA did not disclose the gender, age, and occupation of the infected Filipino.
“As per report that came out today from the Emirates Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP), the concerned Filipino is under observation and is being given the necessary medical care in accordance with the highest standards in the UAE,” read the statement.
The DFA said the Philippine Embassy in Abu Dhabi will work with UAE health officials on the case of the infected Filipino.
The DFA also advised Filipinos in the UAE to observe proper hygiene under the protocols of the UAE Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization.
In another statement, MoHAP has confirmed that aside from Filipino, a Chinese national also tested positive for the novel coronavirus on Saturday, which raises the number of confirmed nCoV cases in UAE to seven.
“The Ministry said that the new cases, who are of Chinese and Filipino nationalities, are under observation and necessary medical care according to the highest health standards applicable in the country, stressing the effectiveness of the online reporting system,” read the statement posted on MoHAP’s official Facebook page.
Filipinos are also instructed to trust information from UAE health officials about the novel coronavirus and to refrain from sharing social media posts with fake information, the DFA said.