Spokesperson for the Egyptian Ministry of Health and Population Hossam Abdel Ghaffar announced the reducing of the minimum age requirement for children to receive acoronavirus vaccine to five years of age.
Abdel Ghaffar was quoted by local media as saying that more clinical studies were conducted to ensure the safety and effectiveness of the vaccines, explaining that the Pfizer vaccine is safe for children to receive.
He added that Egypt has already covered different age groups with vaccines and is starting to move on to wider age groups, because children may be vulnerable to infection.
The higher the rates of vaccination and the wider the coverage, the more quickly societies can return to normalcy, said Abdel Ghaffar.
He also confirmed that clinical studies show that vaccination is completely safe for pregnant women or those planning to become pregnant, and that there are no negative effects detected in the vaccination of expecting mothers.
Furthermore, Abdel Ghaffar pointed out that international health authorities and the Egyptian Drug Authority have authorised the use of COVID-19 vaccines for pregnant women.
Meanwhile, he said that there is an increase in the number of COVID-19 infections, calling on citizens to get vaccinated, adhere to precautionary measures, social distancing, and wearing a mask to maintain public health.
According to the Health Ministry, Egypt reported 1,603 new coronavirus infections on Sunday, bringing the total infection toll up to 410,098 since the start of the pandemic.
