Egypt detected 591 new coronavirus cases on Monday, bringing its total infections tally nationwide to 187,094 since the outbreak last year, a statement by the health ministry said. The ministry also reported 43 new deaths, bringing overall fatalities from the virus nationwide to 11,038. The statement added that 466 patients have been discharged from hospitals over the past 24 hours to mark total recoveries at 144,485. The country has started its coronavirus vaccination campaign in January using the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine and the British-Swedish Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine. Thousands of health workers nationwide have been vaccinated. On Thursday, Egypt expanded the vaccination rollout to include the elderly and people with chronic diseases, vaccinating over 2000 so far after registering vai a designated website. The country has launched a website to allow citizens above the age of 18 to apply for vaccination online, with the priority to be given to those above 65 and those suffering chronic diseases per the country's vaccination priority list. People vaccinated with the Sinopharm vaccine receive a second dose after 21 days, while those who receive the AstraZeneca vaccine take the second dose after 12 weeks. Egyptian authorities granted emergency use authorisation for the Sinopharm, AstraZeneca, and the Russian-made Sputnik V. The country has so far received 350,000 doses of the Sinopharm vaccine and 50,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine. A large shipment of 8.6 million doses out of 40 million doses reserved of the AstraZeneca vaccine is expected through the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisations, an international scheme aiming to ensure equal access to new and underused vaccines. The Russian vaccine yet has not yet been delivered to Egypt.
