The Emirates Drug Establishment, working alongside five national health authorities — the Ministry of Health and Prevention, Emirates Health Services, the Dubai Health Authority, the Department of Health Abu Dhabi, and the Sharjah Health Authority — unveiled a new smart platform called EDE DAWA on Wednesday, November 4, aimed at making it easier for residents to report suspected side effects from medicines. The tool lets residents submit reports describing adverse reactions they have experienced after taking medicines or other pharmaceutical products through a single, user-friendly official channel. Once submitted, each report is reviewed by specialists at the Emirates Drug Establishment following established evaluation procedures. EDE DAWA was developed in partnership with, and with approval from, the Uppsala Monitoring Centre, and forms part of the UAE's ongoing effort to track the safety of medicines already available on the market, rather than relying solely on pre-approval testing. The launch coincides with MedSafetyWeek 2026, running from November 2 to 8. Dr Ruqaya Aqeel Al Bastaki, acting executive director at the Emirates Drug Establishment, said monitoring medicine safety "does not end when a product receives approval and enters the market," adding that reporting side effects "should become part of the responsible use of medicines" among the public. This year's awareness campaign carries the theme "Side effects — don't ignore them, report them." Alongside the tool's launch, authorities are running virtual workshops for healthcare professionals, awareness activities at the University of Sharjah, and webinars for pharmaceutical companies throughout the week. The initiative places the UAE among a growing number of countries actively encouraging residents to play a direct role in post-market medicine safety monitoring, rather than leaving the responsibility solely to regulators and manufacturers.