Abu Dhabi: The Centre of Waste Management — Abu Dhabi (Tadweer) on Monday launched a campaign to prevent mosquito breeding in Abu Dhabi and to create awareness among residents.
Some malaria cases were found in Musaffah in Abu Dhabi where mostly workers reside. The workers go back home on vacations and bring the disease to the UAE, a senior Tadweer official said on Monday.
The official said abandoned used tyres, children’s toys, flower pots, fountains, manholes, plastic bottles and irrigation water in farms are breeding grounds for mosquitos.
Until May this year, about 70,000 different pest control service requests were received from residents in which 3,372 requests were about mosquitos, said Engineer Mohammad Al Marzooqi, Director of Pest Control Projects at Tadweer, said.
During a media briefing on Monday, Tadweer highlighted its action plan for containing mosquito proliferation and educating the public about effective prevention methods as well as the services it provides in this regard.
“Sometimes we find that villa owners keep plastic bottles and old tyres where water gets accumulated, which is major problem for us. So we ask them to keep their villas and surroundings clean and do not keep water stagnant,” Al Marzooqi said.
The government of Abu Dhabi spends Dh72 million to fight the menace of pests, including mosquitos only in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi each year.
He asserted that most complaints they receive about the pests are from the city.
He said the last reported case of malaria in the UAE was in 1997. “But we have ‘imported cases’ of malaria through workers who go on vacation and bring the disease back to the UAE. When a worker is found infected with malaria, the health authority informs us and we send a team to his accommodation and the workplace to make sure that no anopheles mosquitos are present, which spread malaria,” he said.
He urged the public to report stagnant water that causes proliferation of mosquitos and other pests at 800555. He also underlined the need to maintain public hygiene and refrain from disposing of waste in abandoned open areas to avoid creating a fertile ground for the breeding of insects.
Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority and Abu Dhabi Farmer’s Services’ Centre also work with Tadweer to spread awareness among residents.
The awareness drive, which started this month will continue till August.
