The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has approved six healthcare facilities in Bangladesh for conducting Covid-19 test on UAE-bound Bangladesh nationals.
The UAE Embassy in Dhaka conveyed the development in a letter to the chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB), Air Vice Marshal M Mafidur Rahman, on Wednesday.
The letter said, "The General Civil Aviation Authority of the United Arab Emirates has granted approval for RT-PCR test to the laboratories as proposed by the government of Bangladesh on the condition that these tests are required to be carried out within the airport premises and within a maximum of six hours from the time of departure."
"This decision is effective as of 12:00 noon of September 29. Therefore, we request you to kindly give permission to start operation for regular flights between Bangladesh and the United Arab Emirates," it also reads.
The approval of the testing facilities will allow space for many Bangladeshi returnee migrant workers to take a sigh of relief.
Thousands of migrant workers who came home on vacation would certainly get relief from the uncertainty of their returning to their workplace in the Arab country.
The six approved healthcare institutions are Stamz Healthcare (BD) Limited, CSBF Health Center, Gulshan Clinic Limited, AMZ Hospital Limited, Anwer Khan Modern Medical College Hospital, and DMFR Molecular Lab and Diagnostic.
The healthcare facilities have already installed labs at the capital's Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) to test Covid samples for the UAE-bound Bangladeshis.
According to the guidelines of the UAE government, foreign workers who want to return to their workplace in the Gulf country have to produce Covid-19 test result that has to be conducted at the airport within six hours of their departure.
