Dubai Restaurants Offer Discounts for COVID-19 Vaccinated Diners
Dubai restaurants have begun offering discounts to customers who have been inoculated against coronavirus, amid a vaccination drive as the emirate seeks to fight the pandemic without closing its doors.
The UAE said it has already vaccinated
some 2.5 million of its population of about 10 million.
“Spread love, not Rona,” say social media fliers
for three restaurants run by Gates Hospitality, offerings a 10 percent discount
to residents who have taken the first dose of a vaccine and 20 percent for
those who have taken two.
Diners must show proof of
inoculation, such as a medical certificate, to get the discount, AFP reported.
The UAE, made up of seven emirates
including Dubai, began mass inoculations in December after approving vaccines
made by Chinese firm Sinopharm and US drugmaker Pfizer and its German partner
BioNTech.
Dubai’s health authority said this
week it would have to scale back on vaccinations after Pfizer announced
shipment delays due to works at its key plant in Belgium. The Sinopharm vaccine
is still freely available.
Over the weekend the guidelines
were tightened, with the number of people allowed at social gatherings slashed
from 200 to 10, and restaurants and cafes ordered to increase spacing between
tables from two meters to three.
The emirate has also suspended non-essential surgery in hospitals after a surge in COVID-19 infections.
