EGYPT – Egypt’s Acting Minister of Health and Population Khaled Abdel Ghaffar met and had talks with Cuban Ambassador to Egypt Tania Aguiar Fernandez on cooperation in the field of vaccine production.
They also discussed areas of possible cooperation in the sectors of healthcare and scientific research for the enhancement of Egypt’s scientific and technical capabilities as well as related infrastructure and manufacturing capabilities.
Acting Minister Abdel Ghaffar said that cooperation in the fields of scientific research along with benefits from scientific and research expertise via research institutions and centers in both countries will contribute to the community and support decision makers.
They further discussed an exchange programme involving exchanging student missions from the faculties of medicine in addition to exchanging doctors to reach the highest benefit as well as fill gaps in healthcare provision.
Abdel Ghaffar recently drafted a proposal to produce AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine locally through the Egyptian Holding Company for Biological Products and Vaccines (VACSERA) which already produces doses of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine.
The VACSERA factories, the largest vaccine production complex in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region, will further contribute to raising the production capacity of COVID-19 vaccines under the Egypt-Cuba cooperation.
He stated that earlier in February that Egypt produced over 30 million doses of Sinovac/VACSERA COVID-19 vaccine and launched clinical trials of the Egypt-developed COVID-19 vaccine dubbed Covivax.
Abdel Ghaffar also commented on the launch of the construction work of a logistic vaccine refrigeration complex at the factory complex of the Egyptian Holding Company for Biological Products and Vaccines in the Sixth of October city.
He said the cooling complex is established in accordance with the World Health Organization’s standards, accommodating 150 million doses of vaccine as well as facilitates the storage and preservation of raw material.
“Egypt has been selected as one of the recipients of the mRNA technology used in the manufacturing of vaccines and other important medical drugs to confront many incurable diseases,” added Abdel Ghaffar.
Egypt examines 1,719,602 million children for Hepatitis C
Meanwhile, the Acting Health Minister Khaled Abdel Ghaffar declared that 1,719,602 million first graders in preparatory schools have been medically examined Under the 100 Million Health Initiative to eradicate Hepatitis C in Egypt.
The health survey targeted 2.5 million students in the first grade during the current academic year AND the ministry set 419 medical teams in 27 governates to ensure all the targeted students were examined.
The medical tests will be carried out for the next five years for first graders in preparatory school to protect the coming generations from Hepatitis C under the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s directives.
The initiatives launched under the major initiative of 100 Million Healthy ‘Lives’ also include an initiative to support the health of Egyptian women and an initiative to examine and treat people with chronic diseases and detect kidney disease.
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