Building a Shield: How JAHEZIYA is Redefining Disaster Readiness in the UAE
In a world where emergencies can strike without warning, preparedness is no longer optional — it is essential. The Jaheziya Initiative (“Jaheziya” means “readiness” in Arabic) is a bold move by the UAE to ensure this readiness is built into the very fabric of its frontline response capabilities.
Launched jointly by the Frontline Heroes Office and the Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak Volunteer Programme, Jaheziya aims to elevate emergency- and disaster-management training to international gold-standard levels.
Its vision: “innovative life-saving training for everyone responding to medical emergencies and disaster management.” Its mission: “Saving lives by providing sustainable training for frontline heroes who put their lives to save others.”
Why it matters
From infectious disease outbreaks to nuclear incidents, natural disasters to large-scale fires, the risk landscape is growing in complexity. The UAE’s approach through Jaheziya is to create a highly skilled network of professionals who are certified, inter-operable, and ready for any eventuality.
It’s not just about training individuals—it’s about building systemic resilience. When the first responder, the volunteer, the hospital team all operate from the same playbook, the outcomes improve.
What they do
- Accredited training programs delivered through e-learning, mobile training, seminars and self-learning options.
- Bringing together medical and non-medical responders (volunteers, emergency services, security, etc) under one training umbrella.
- Integrating cutting-edge scenarios into training (e.g., airborne viruses, nuclear incidents, multi-agency response).
What’s next
The ambition is large: to cover every citizen and resident of the UAE with access to a certified, highly-skilled frontline professional network. The challenge: ensuring the training reaches remote or volunteer forces, sustaining certification upgrades, and maintaining ongoing engagement. If Jaheziya can succeed, it will set a global benchmark for national-level readiness programs.
