No company is allowed to practise pest control business without obtaining a licence from the local authority, according to a resolution issued by Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

The new rule regulates the use of insecticides in fighting public health epidemics.

Resolution No. 27 of 2012 stipulates that the scope of pest control for public health by companies includes killing harmful flying and crawling insects, vectors like flies, mosquitoes and cockroaches, rodents and pests of stored products.

Pest control companies are demanded to only use insecticides registered with the Ministry of Environment and Water. They are strictly prohibited from importing or using any products unless registering them with the ministry. When using these insecticides, operators should ensure the safety in facilities like warehouses, offices and targeted sites. Article 6 of the resolution bans advertising any insecticide without a licence for importing and using it.

The resolution also specifies requirements for licensing a pest control technician which include, among others, holding a diploma from an accredited university in public health, environmental health, agricultural engineering or biology and a training certificate from any agency of the World Health Organisation or specialised government agency.

The resolution spells out safety and health measures for both technicians and warehouses, stressing that warehouses should not be used for any other purposes. Powerful heating and lighting systems are not allowed to avoid breakout of fire.

On transportation, the resolution demands the service providers to transport insecticides in special trucks conforming to the technical, environmental and health standards.

The resolution also bans the use of smoke insecticides and thermal insecticidal fogging inside apartments and residential buildings.

The resolution assigned the local authority to conduct regular inspection and supervision on the service providers to ensure their compliance with the provisions of this resolution.

Violators will face an administrative closure of business for a period not more than three months. The local authority may allow the erring company to get back into business before the closure duration ends if it sets its house in order.