Egypt to use Cairo's int'l exhibition center for mass COVID-19 vaccination: minister

CAIRO, April 14 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian Health Minister Hala Zayed said on Wednesday that the government is preparing the vast Cairo International Convention and Exhibition Centre for mass COVID-19 vaccination, noting the center can accommodate 10,000 citizens daily.

In a virtual cabinet meeting, Zayed explained that 75 clinics are currently being prepared at the spacious venue, according to a cabinet statement.

She pointed out that the center has a yard with an area of 1,500 square meters where citizens can wait, "which ensures social distancing."

The Egyptian COVID-19 vaccination campaign relies on two vaccines: Chinese Sinopharm and British-Swedish Oxford/AstraZeneca.

Egypt started in late January vaccinating medical staff of government hospitals with Sinopharm vaccine, which was the first to be approved by the Egyptian Drug Authority (EDA), followed by Oxford/AstraZeneca and Russia's Sputnik V vaccines.

In early March, the North African country started vaccinating elderly people and patients with chronic diseases against coronavirus.

Egypt has so far reported a total of 212,130 COVID-19 cases, including 12,526 deaths and 160,431 recoveries.