A medical worker shows a dose of COVID-19 vaccine in a hospital in Cairo, Egypt, March 4, 2021. Egypt started on Thursday vaccinating elderly people and patients with chronic diseases against COVID-19, the Egyptian cabinet said in a statement. Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and Health Minister Hala Zayed were present at one of Cairo medical centers to witness the two categories of citizens receiving their first shots of the anti-coronavirus vaccine. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa)

CAIRO, March 4  -- Egypt started on Thursday vaccinating elderly people and patients with chronic diseases against COVID-19, the Egyptian cabinet said in a statement.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and Health Minister Hala Zayed were present at one of Cairo medical centers to witness the two categories of citizens receiving their first shots of the anti-coronavirus vaccine.

Madbouly stressed that the state is carrying out the vaccination process in a scientific manner, starting with testing the vaccines through the Egyptian Drug Authority (EDA) until their distribution according to priorities.

He noted that the Health Ministry has launched a website to register citizens who would like to be vaccinated, adding that the government will work on increasing the number of recipients of the vaccines.

Meanwhile, those who cannot access the website could apply for vaccination at the nearest hospital.

In late January, Egypt started vaccinating medical staff of government hospitals with Chinese Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine, which was the first to be approved by the EDA that recently approved Oxford/AstraZeneca and Sputnik V vaccines.

For her part, the Egyptian health minister said that the ministry specified 40 vaccination centers that will be eventually increased with the inflow of vaccine doses to Egypt.

Egypt has so far confirmed a total of 184,168 COVID-19 cases, including 10,822 deaths and 142,155 recoveries.