Egypt's Minister of Health and Population Hala Zayed announced, on Wednesday, that the first batch of the locally produced vaccine against the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has been delivered to vaccination centres nationwide. The vaccine was produced through a cooperation agreement between the Chinese company Sinovac and the Egyptian Holding Company for Biological Products and Vaccines (VACSERA). The Sinovac-VACSERA doses were delivered to the stores of the Ministry of Health and Population, after completing the necessary testing stages, according to the requirements of the World Health Organization (WHO). After that, they were distributed to vaccination centers. The manufacturing and analysis process for 15 million doses, which is the monthly production capacity of VACSERA, is underway, in preparation for the nationwide distribution. The vaccine obtained an emergency licence from the Egyptian Drug Authority, after passing the necessary tests in accordance with the global rules and references followed by the WHO to assess the safety, quality, and effectiveness of vaccines and to confirm their sustainability. According to the Health Ministry, the first million doses of the Sinovac-VACSERA vaccine were distributed to the 657 vaccination centres nationwide, including 145 centres for travellers.
