The Minister of Health in Egypt, Hala Zayed, has been injected with Chinese version of the coronavirus (COVID-19) trial vaccine.
The phase 3 clinical trials of the vaccines are currently taking place in Egypt and 100 other countries.
A statement by the ministry’s spokesman Khaled Megahed, said the minister had the vaccine injected in the deltoid muscle in her upper arm at the Egyptian Holding Company for Biopharmaceuticals and Vaccines (Vacsera).
The vaccine trial is being carried out in Egypt in cooperation with the Chinese government and the UAE’s G42 Healthcare.
In July, Egypt was selected by China to serve as a future African hub for manufacturing a coronavirus vaccine if one is developed by Beijing.
The trial vaccine has been administered to 40,000 volunteers around the world, none of whom have displayed adverse side effects. Some 45,000 more volunteers are set to take the vaccine.
Some 6,000 people in Egypt are among the participants in phase 3, which is deemed the final stage in the trial to test the efficacy and safety of the vaccine before it is licensed, the statement said.
Zayed has called on Egyptians to take part in the trials “for the sake of humanity.”
According to a previous statement by the health ministry, volunteers receive two injections, 21 days apart, and will be monitored over the year.
They also will take a PCR test to make sure they have not previously been infected with the virus.
As of Sunday, Egypt has reported a total of 103,000 coronavirus cases, including 5,883 deaths
