Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi ordered the government, on Sunday, to launch a national project for the collection and production of plasma derivatives.
In a meeting with Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and Minister of Health Hala Zayed, as well as other top health officials in the country, Al-Sisi also followed up on the government’s efforts to counter the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
Bassam Rady, the official spokesperson for the presidency, said that Al-Sisi followed up on the the steps and contacts made by the Egyptian concerned authorities regarding the plasma collection and manufacturing in partnership with foreign entities in this field.
During the meeting, the officials also reviewed the results of studies on establishing new blood collection centres nationwide.
Meanwhile, Zayed briefed Al-Sisi on the latest developments in the epidemiological situation of the coronavirus and the planned precautionary measures to be taken over the coming period, most notably during the parliamentary elections and the World Handball Championship.
The President also directed the medical sector to prepare for any possible second wave of the virus, especially with the approaching new school year to ensure the safety of the families and students.
Moreover, the presidency spokesperson said that Zayed briefed Al-Sisi on the progress of the new comprehensive health insurance system in different governorates.
Egypt announced its first confirmed COVID-19 case on 14 February and the first death from the highly infectious virus was on 8 March.
From the first week of July, the daily new COVID-19 fatalities and infections in Egypt started to decline amid remarkable increase of daily recoveries.
The country has recently resumed international flights, lifted a partial nighttime curfew, and reopened restaurants, cafes, theaters, and cinemas, as well as hotels, museums and archeological sites, all with limited capacity.
The ease of restrictions is part of a “coexistence plan” adopted by the government over the past weeks to maintain anti-coronavirus precautionary measures while resuming economic activities.
