Egypt Increases Number of Vaccination Centers

A coronavirus vaccination campaign in Cairo (Reuters)
A coronavirus vaccination campaign in Cairo (Reuters)
TT

Egypt Increases Number of Vaccination Centers

A coronavirus vaccination campaign in Cairo (Reuters)
A coronavirus vaccination campaign in Cairo (Reuters)

Egypt announced that the number of vaccination centers was raised last week to 678. A total of 512 centers are dedicated to citizens and 175 centers to travelers.

Also, Egypt’s Ministry of Health and Population is providing facilitations to travelers to receive the vaccine.

The Ministry on Wednesday reported 203 new coronavirus cases and eight deaths.

A total of 286,938 cases have been reported in Egypt, alongside 16,691 deaths and 236,539 recoveries.

Health and Population Minister Hala Zayed said that 1.3 million of the State's administrative apparatus personnel were vaccinated against coronavirus.

Zayed added that 250,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson Covid 19 vaccine were given to travelers.

The minister said the number of Egyptians seeking to be vaccinated before traveling increased from 260,000 to 760,000 over the past 72 hours. A total of 362,000 vaccination certificates with a QR code system were issued in August, she said.

In a related context, the cabinet denied postponing the beginning of the scholar year that coincides with the fourth wave of the virus.

Classes will start on the scheduled dates, the cabinet said, noting that the preventative precautions will continue to be applied to limit the spread of the virus.

The Ministry of Education and Technical Education urged workers to register on the website to guarantee to receive the two doses before the beginning of the year.



Jordan’s King Abdullah Swears in New Government Led by Technocrat 

Jordan's King Abdullah II speaks during a news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, after talks at the Chancellery, in Berlin, Germany, March 15, 2022. (Reuters)
Jordan's King Abdullah II speaks during a news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, after talks at the Chancellery, in Berlin, Germany, March 15, 2022. (Reuters)
TT

Jordan’s King Abdullah Swears in New Government Led by Technocrat 

Jordan's King Abdullah II speaks during a news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, after talks at the Chancellery, in Berlin, Germany, March 15, 2022. (Reuters)
Jordan's King Abdullah II speaks during a news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, after talks at the Chancellery, in Berlin, Germany, March 15, 2022. (Reuters)

Jordan's King Abdullah II swore in a reformist government on Wednesday tasked with accelerating IMF-backed reforms and pushing through political and economic modernization crucial to reversing a decade of sluggish growth, officials said.

The Harvard-educated prime minister, Jafar Hassan, headed the monarch's office in his last job. Hasan has proven to be an able administrator during a long public career in which he oversaw economic reforms as a deputy premier and during a stint as planning minister, according to officials and politicians.

Politicians say a key task is accelerating IMF-guided reforms and reining in more than $50 billion in public debt in a country with high unemployment.

Veteran foreign minister Ayman Safadi kept his post in the new 32-member cabinet that includes moderates, tribal politicians and technocrats.

Although the new composition of the 138-member parliament retains a pro-government majority, the more vocal Islamist-led opposition could challenge IMF-backed free-market reforms and foreign policy, diplomats and officials say.

The new finance minister Abdul Hakim al-Shibli, a seasoned economist, replaces veteran Mohammad al-Ississ who won praise from the IMF for stepping up reforms and maintaining fiscal prudence while avoiding austerity policies.

The previous government had sought to drive reforms pushed by King Abdullah to help reverse a decade of sluggish growth, hovering at around 2%, that was worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic and conflicts in neighboring Iraq and Syria.