Egypt reported fresh surge in daily infections with COVID-19 on Wednesday, as the country official battling with the second wave of coronavirus
The Health and Population Ministry announced 788 new coronavirus cases for Tuesday, compared to 718 on Monday and 664 on Sunday.
The ministry also announced 37 virus-related deaths and 401 recovering cases. Egypt has now recorded a total of 127,061 confirmed cases, 107,563 recovered cases, and 7,167 virus-related deaths.
Egypt has officially entered the second wave of the pandemic, after cases have risen steadily over the past month.
Government officials continue to urge the public to adhere to precautionary measures against the virus, and the Egyptian Cabinet has called on authorities to strictly enforce the country’s mask mandate, which applies to all public transportation and indoor public spaces.
Those who do not wear a mask in the designated areas could face a fine of up to LE4,000.
Egypt’s Health and Population Ministry’s Scientific Committee to Combat COVID-19 has estimated that the real figures for coronavirus infections in the country are 10 times higher than the official figures.
On December 10, the country received its first shipment of a coronavirus vaccine from the Chinese company Sinopharm, which is said to be 86 percent effective. The vaccine will be free for Egyptians, with the first doses being reserved for healthcare workers and at-risk populations.
Egypt has yet to reach Europe or US-like figures, however, testing in the country is not widely accessible or affordable for the average Egyptian.
Moreover, the government has decided to focus its testing on those presenting with severe symptoms of the virus, which means that the health ministry statistics do not reflect the actual number of active cases in the country, WHO official Rick Brennan stated on December 8.
