COVID-19: Dubai resumes wedding receptions

Dubai: Effective from 22 October 2020, wedding receptions will be allowed to resume in Dubai’s hotels, halls, homes, temporary venues, and tents in residential areas, the Supreme Committee of Crisis and Disaster Management in Dubai announced on Sunday.

The decision enables the community to celebrate social occasions in an environment where precautionary measures are strictly implemented, and high levels of safety are maintained.

The new decision follows the recommendations made by frontline entities to the Committee regarding social events.

The Committee headed by His Highness Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum stressed the importance of families following precautionary guidelines as part of the comprehensive enforcement of health and safety measures.

The guidelines are aimed at protecting the health of the public and ensuring guests are protected from the risk of exposure to the virus. The committee has set a number of conditions for holding wedding receptions and social events, including:

- Each hall is allowed to host a maximum of 200 people while tents and homes are allowed to accommodate a maximum of 30 people, subject to compliance with the rule of one person per four square metres of venue space

- Attendees are required to wear face masks at all times and can remove them only when seated at their tables

- A maximum of five guests are allowed per table

- Attendees should avoid being seated face-to-face and maintain a distance of more than 1.5 metres between each other

- Tables should be placed at least two metres apart from each other

- The duration of the event at halls, hotels, homes, temporary venues and tents should not exceed four hours

- Elderly people and those with chronic conditions should be advised not to attend social functions

- Any person experiencing symptoms such as coughing, or fever must refrain from attending events

A set of mandatory guidelines have been issued to hotels, halls and service providers. All precautionary measures must be strictly implemented at events.

The Supreme Committee said that guidelines related to wedding receptions will be stringently enforced. Violators will be held accountable for lack of compliance with the rules.

UAE and Dubai authorities are continuing to make comprehensive efforts to combat COVID-19, the Committee said. It called on members of the community to strictly comply with precautionary measures and avoid large gatherings that do not adhere to guidelines.

The Supreme Committee further said all its decisions related to preventive measures are aimed at safeguarding everyone’s health and safety, which continue to be the highest priorities for the Government of Dubai and frontline entities. Authorities are sparing no effort to protect the safety of citizens, residents and tourists. The community’s commitment to preventive guidelines remains critical in combating the pandemic, the Committee noted.