Dubai Police awareness campaign pays off

Fewer calls on 999 prevented delays in responding to real emergencies

Dubai Police have praised members of the public for showing awareness on the difference between the non-emergency call centre number 901 and the emergency hotline number 999.

Dubai Police revealed that its non-emergency call centre number 901 had witnessed an increase in the number of calls received over the last three years, which eased pressure on the emergency hotline number 999 centre and prevented unnecessary delays in responding to real emergencies.

Major General Kamel Butti Al Suwaidi, Director of the General Department of Operations at Dubai Police, said that the force has harnessed some positive response from members of the public towards its awareness campaign ‘Don’t Put Their Lives on Hold’, which was launched in 2018 to promote 901 as a number that is highly advised to report non-emergency cases.

“We launched the campaign in 2018 after receiving 70 per cent of non-emergency inquiries on the hotline number 999, which intensified pressure on the number that is dedicated to saving lives. We’re glad to say that the campaign has successfully achieved its objective,” Maj Gen Al Suwaidi added.

Butti Al Falasi, Director of the Security Awareness, explained that the 901 call centre number experienced a rapid and significant increase over the last years, receiving 397,221 calls in 2018, 497,577 in 2019 and 701,569 the year after.

Easing pressure

Al Falasi confirmed that the hotline number 999 witnessed a gradual and steady decrease in received calls over the same period. The centre received 4,124,937 calls in 2020 compared to 5,351,009 and 5,221,607 calls in 2018 and 2019, respectively.

33 services over the phone

Dedicated to non-emergency cases, the Dubai Police call centre number 901 is within the Force’s ‘Safest City’ strategic objective. It responds to customers’ inquiries and quickly provides them with various services via direct phone channels, smart police applications, and interactive chat services.

It also includes some of the latest smart technologies and artificial intelligence services and provides 33 over-the-phone services to community members and the force’s employees.