Dr. Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Rabiah, the Minister of Health, launched here today in the presence of Minister of Agriculture Dr Fahd Balghunaim, An International Workshop on the National Plan to discuss Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) as well as experts of the World Health Organization and the U.S CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention). Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Virus (CCHFV) is a tick-borne virus that is emerging as a significant human pathogen in many regions of the world, including Africa, Asia, and Europe. Speaking on the occasion, Dr Al Rabiah said that the workshop comes in line with royal directives, for the effective role of the Ministry of Health in maintaining the health and safety of citizens and residents, under which the Ministry initiated with the relevant authorities various preventive measures and precautions to address the disease known in Arabic as "AlKhumra". The Ministry of Health (MOH) formed joint committees and working groups comprising experts from within and outside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the preparation of the national plan to confront CCHF in order to identify the epidemiology of this disease and to identify ways to transition and implementation of control methods to contain and control the disease and prevent its spread. The Minister of Health reiterated that the situation of this disease in Saudi Arabia is under control and thankfully there is no reason to worry as the number of cases, since the discovery of the disease in 1994, and until now are limited.
