Saudi Arabia has begun compensating the families of health workers who died because of the coronavirus, state media reported, after announcing last year that each will receive $133,000.

The kingdom said in October it would distribute “500,000 Saudi riyals to the families of those who died as a result of Covid-19 working in the health sectors, be it government or private, civilian or military, Saudi or non-Saudi”.

The oil-rich Gulf country said the decision applies from “the date of the first recorded infection” in the country on March 2, 2020.