KIU, Main Campus – Did you know about the WHO WhatsApp number that provides instant and factual information about the COVID-19 pandemic? No? That's okay, we are happy to tell you about it. 

The dedicated messaging platform shares information in various languages including Arabic, English, French, Hindi, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese. This was done in partnership with both WhatsApp and Facebook, with the aim to keep people safe from Coronavirus and misinformation. 

The platform is easy-to-use and has the potential to reach 2 billion people, hence enabling WHO to get information directly to the people that need it by making it easily accessible.

The platform also provides the latest news and information on Coronavirus, including details on symptoms and how people can protect themselves and others. It also provides the latest situation reports and numbers in real-time to help government decision-makers protect the health of their populations.

The platform can be accessed by a link that opens a conversation on WhatsApp at: https://bit.ly/who-covid-19-whatsapp.

Users can type “hi” to +41 798 931 892 on WhatsApp to activate the conversation, prompting a menu of options that can help answer their questions about COVID-19.

The WHO Health Alert was developed in collaboration with Praekelt.Org, using Turn machine learning technology.