Coronavirus: How Dubai inspectors keep Naif Market Covid-safe

Nearly 100 shops in Naif market witness surprise visits from inspection officers from the Commercial Compliance & Consumer Protection cell of Dubai Economy every day.

While inspections have been a routine for years to ensure regulatory compliance by shopkeepers, this practice has been instrumental in keeping Covid-19 infection numbers low in one of the busiest shopping districts in Dubai.

“Since the start of the pandemic, we have not just been checking the licence agreement of traders but also their adherence to Covid-19 safety protocols. We check if shopkeepers and customers are wearing masks, maintaining social distance, and whether shops have proper signages to make customers aware of Covid-19 safety rules. There have been a handful of non-adherence cases since July in this area,” said Abdulla Husain Al Zaabi, Assistant Inspector, CCCP, who spends seven to eight hours every day in this district inspecting the shops.

On Saturday, when Khaleej Times spent a few hours with the inspection officer, none of the shops were fined.

The objective, Abdulla pointed out, is to raise awareness and ensure people go about doing their business in a safe manner.

“It is not always about slapping fines. We do keep a close eye on all shopkeepers and customers. But we also understand that it is okay for a shopkeeper to take a breather for a few seconds or a minute when he is alone in his shop,” said Abdulla. “But I hardly see people without masks here.”

The public is urged to follow basic safety rules and report any instance of non-compliance through the Dubai Consumer app or by calling 600545555 or by visiting consumerrights.ae.