UAE’s security system has significantly progressed over past 50 years: Sharjah Police

Major General Saif Al Zari Al Shamsi, Commander-in-Chief of the Sharjah Police, has said that the UAE’s security system has significantly progressed over the past 50 years, noting that safety and security have been part of the key foundations of the country since the establishment of the UAE by the late Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan and the Founding Fathers.

He also pointed out that this approach is being followed by the UAE’s leadership, led by President His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, in addition to achieving economic growth, social development and other living requirements.

In an interview with the Emirates News Agency (WAM) at the Sharjah Police headquarters, Major General Al Shamsi stressed that the Ministry of Interior (MOI), led by H.H. Lt. General Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, has established a clear strategy in line with the national vision to make the UAE among the safest countries in the world.

Therefore, the UAE Cabinet has set indexes consistent with the national agenda and comprising five pillars, which are "feeling of safety," "fast response," "death rate on highways," "alarming reports," "dependency on security" and "reliability of security and police services with businesses."

He then pointed out that to assess the level of advancement of the security system, the country’s performance in these indexes must be monitored, noting that the cabinet’s report revealed that the MoI has registered distinguished achievements, becoming an international model of police leadership.

Major General Al Shamsi asserted that the fact that Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Dubai were awarded advanced global rankings by a foreign institution is in line with the country’s vision to lead in the areas of safety and security, which is the outcome of the initiatives and projects launched by ministry and police leaders.

Speaking about the plans of the Sharjah Police for the next fifty years, Major General Al Shamsi said that the Sharjah Police has adopted a proactive approach to ensure its readiness for all future challenges and opportunities. Therefore, it launched the project, titled, "Foreseeing the Future of Security in Sharjah until 2030," which resulted in several future projects.

The Sharjah Police has updated the project and the framework for predicting the future, to keep pace with the best global practices, he added, noting that the key areas for predicting the future include unconventional future crimes, the future of cybersecurity, the future of government services, the future of movement, the future of correctional facilities and inmate rehabilitation.

He further added that all sectors are being considered, including the penal, traffic, social and technological sectors, as well as leadership and competitiveness, noting that the ultimate goal is to achieve safety and security and boost the quality of life in the UAE, in general, and Sharjah, in particular.

On the standards that enabled Sharjah to be ranked sixth globally in terms of the safest cities in the world with a rate of 83.5 percent, Al Shamsi explained that the Sharjah Police is keen to ensure the feeling of safety and security and enhance the mutual trust between the police and members of the community, by implementing strategic plans that are in line with the ministry’s strategy aimed at improving safety and security in the UAE.

He highlighted the fact that relevant plans and initiatives will help increase security in the emirate, most notably through intensifying the number of patrols and overall security presence, which reduced the crime rate, as well as through employing modern technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), to boost safety and security using drones. He also explained the details of the "E-Patrols Programme," which aims to monitor negative behaviours on social media and cybercrimes, as well as raise the public’s awareness about them.

Speaking about a project to install surveillance cameras around Sharjah, Major General Al Shamsi noted that the project is now 60 percent complete in Sharjah City, 20 percent in the Central Region, and 20 percent in the Eastern Region, adding that the project’s coverage in Sharjah City accounts for 40 percent, the Central Region for 10 percent, and the Eastern Region for 10 percent.

He then pointed out that the total number of surveillance cameras is 11,304, including 500 analytical surveillance cameras, 750 cameras that detect vehicle licence plates, and 10,054 early alarm warning cameras.

Regarding the Sharjah Police’s work during the current health crisis caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Major General Al Shamsi stated that the local crisis and disaster management team aims to maintain the emirate’s safety and security and to address all related crises and risks while prioritising the safety of employees, customers and members of the community. Therefore, the Sharjah Police has implemented appropriate precautionary measures to curb the spread of the virus in all departments that involve direct contact with people. Moreover, the team’s executive committee has adopted a special protocol that covers all local public and private authorities, which determines all the preventive procedures to be followed.

"The Sharjah Police organised several security awareness programmes targeting all segments of the community, which played a key role in its plan and strategy aimed at addressing all natural and social phenomena, by raising the public’s awareness," he affirmed.

On the Sharjah Police’s support for its innovative recruits, Major General Al Shamsi further stressed that it is keen to support its cadres by enrolling them in innovative courses and lab sessions and endorsing their ideas and projects to be implemented, adding that many internal and external courses have been held, and noting that 2,514 recruits passed the accredited e-courses last year, which had a considerable influence on the rise in achievement levels across all departments.

WAM