One million Egyptians have been vaccinated against coronavirus, with almost no severe, dangerous or unexpected side effects recorded, a presidential adviser for health affairs said Sunday. In statements to eXtra News channel, Mohamed Awad Tag El-Din said the government has designated an emergency number for vaccinated citizens to report any serious side effects. Some vaccinated people have only shown minor side effects, including pain at the injection site, cold-like symptoms, feeling of cracking in the body, and a temporary rise in body temperature, he pointed out. Egypt is using the Chinese Sinopharm and the British AstraZenaca vaccines in its innouculation campaign. The country has been witnessing a daily rise in infections since late April, with 1,132 new cases detected on Saturday, bringing total infections nationwide to 236,272 including 176,363 recoveries and 13,845 deaths. As a result, the cabinet announced on Wednesday a list of strict precautionary measures meant to curb the spread of the virus during the coming ten days that include the Eid El-Fitr holiday, marked from 12 to 16 May. In its battle against the virus, the government is betting on public awareness and its mass vaccination campaign that started in January with the inoculation of medical staff in designated hospitals before expanding in March to senior citizens and priority groups. With nearly 1 percent vaccinated of Egypt's 100 million-plus population, Egypt's prime minister said Wednesday that a lack of conviction on the part of citizens in taking the vaccine "has been noticed", reassuring people that the vaccine is "safe and its side effects are extremely rare." Concerning the existence on coronavirus variants and mutated strains in Egypt, Tag El-Din stressed in earlier statements that Egypt has not detected a new strain of the coronavirus amid the current third wave of the pandemic so far. In another bid to curb the spread of infections, the health minister announced on Saturday that a rapid molecular test – known as ID NOW and only takes 15 minutes to detect infection – would be conducted on both Egyptians and foreign nationals coming from the countries experiencing COVID-19 variants.
