RIYADH — Zain KSA has launched several humanitarian initiatives since the beginning of COVID-19 crisis, as part of its corporate social responsibility toward the Kingdom, in line with the national synergy and solidarity embodied by the Saudi society as a whole and with the aim of passing through this difficult period and to help reduce its potential damages. These initiatives were implemented to support various sectors such as the educational sector through distance learning, the private sector by facilitating business enterprises, accommodating clients of small and medium enterprises as well as individuals, and supporting isolated infected people in hospitals or self-quarantined at home, in addition to awareness initiatives as well. Zain KSA CEO Eng. Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Al Deghaither praised the support received from the "Communications and Information Technology Commission" for facilitating a number of these initiatives, through the temporary licensing of operators to use additional frequencies in the 700 and 800 MHz bands, which means 50% increase in the frequencies used by service providers in the Kingdom in enhancing the capabilities of the network in various regions to meet the growing demand of internet usage during this crisis, and to ensure the quality of online communication as well. Al-Deghaither affirmed that these initiatives emphasize Zain KSA’s humanitarian obligation in its awareness role as an integral partner in building and developing the digital society in the Kingdom, stressing the need for synergy between various components of society to join together compassionately to overcome the pandemic. In a step that embodies a commitment toward society, and as an expression of its firm belief in the importance to support the educational sector, Zain KSA announced a donation of 30,000 subscribers to Internet data to both male and female students in the Kingdom. This step comes in support of the initiative "We are all givers," as well as "Be part of an educational journey for someone, and donate your additional device," both of which were launched earlier by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in partnership with a number of government sector institutions, private and non-profit companies, with the aim of providing a comprehensive educational plan, overcoming obstacles to distance learning, and bridging the gap experienced by students of low-income families in the Kingdom. In addition, Zain KSA has also decided for business package subscribers, to allow company employees to make unlimited calls among each other as they were earlier constrained with a certain limit, in order to facilitate their work from home and support initiatives on working remotely, in addition to maintaining the service for customers from small and medium enterprises even if bills are not being paid, for a month. In order to maintain communication between family and friends under these circumstances, Zain KSA extended the payment period of paying bills to subscribers for an additional 16 days, with the possibility of paying via electronic channels from home, through the mobile phone application, or the company"s website or even through digital banking channels. Furthermore, it has also reduced the subscription costs for 5G Shabab Postpaid packages by 20%, offered a free-month for Zain fibers new subscribers, doubled the data allowance for Voice Plans, and allowed the freezing of some services without paying any additional fees. Zain KSA has also allowed its users free browsing on educational platforms to facilitate distance learning in addition to governmental and health websites and applications, through the National Education Portal “iEN”, the Ministry of Education’s unified education system portal, and the Ministry of Health website. Additionally, within the framework of official authority initiatives to promote humanitarian welfare and safety in the Kingdom, Zain KSA is providing its services free of charge to subscribers confirmed to be infected with coronavirus and kept under quarantine in homes and hospitals. Moreover, to ensure the safety of the Kingdom’s citizens and residents alike and urge them to take responsibility in preventing the spread of infection, Zain KSA has recently launched an interactive initiative through the hashtag #بيتك_أزين (Your Stay at Home Just Got Better) to encourage people to stay home and away from gatherings and follow the precautionary measures and directives such as the extended curfew. It has also renamed its network as “Stay Home” instead of Zain, and added an audio prompt to all calls urging callers to stay at home. Zain KSA is also keen to ensure the safety of its employees in various regions of the Kingdom, and took necessary measures since the beginning of the crisis. Awareness messages were sent on the need to exercise caution and adhere to safety guidelines and directions of the Ministry of Health and local authorities. — SG