MPs: Egypt’s planned health crisis management center ‘vital’ but ‘late’

CAIRO – 6 May 2020: As the government has earlier announced establishing a national center for crisis and health disaster management, many Parliament members have endorsed the step, and considered it vital during the current coronavirus battle. They also called for granting the center a strong authority.

In an interview with Egypt Today, Secretary of the Parliament’s Health Committee Sami Al-Mashad said the goals and terms of reference of the planned center would be determined during the coming period, considering it a very important step while dealing with coronavirus crisis.

The new center will have a role in the assessment of the coronavirus challenge in Egypt, to help the state institutions benefit from this experience and develop their performance in the event of any future crisis.

“Crisis management is a very important and effective matter concerning confrontation and solutions,” he added.

Makram Radwan, a member of the Health Committee, considered the step very important but “so late,” saying that such center “should have been established a long time ago.”

“Any country is subject to the occurrence of health crises and disasters at any time,” Radwan said, affirming that importance of a center or authority that has solutions to these crises based on studies and previous experience.

Radwan highlighted the role of crisis management departments in limiting harm and reducing losses.

Head of the Suggestions and Complaints Committee said it is necessary to accelerate the establishment of this center and to define its terms of reference. He also called for choosing competent figures in this field to lead the center.

On Wednesday, the Egyptian Health Ministry said 387 people in the country tested positive for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) recently, making one of the highest daily counts in Egypt, and 17 people died with the virus.

This brings the total number of reported cases and deaths to 7,588 and 469 respectively, the ministry said.

The test results of 2,314 people of the reported cases turned from positive to negative, including 1,815 people who fully recovered.

Also, 85 cases, all of them Egyptians, left hospital after they recovered, according to the instructions of the World Health Organization (WHO).

Egypt's coronavirus death rate 6.6%: official figures

CAIRO - 4 May 2020: The current coronavirus (COVID-19) mortality rate in Egypt is 6.6 percent, according to the Health Ministry's official figures on Sunday, after a total of 429 cases have officially died of the novel virus, while deaths worldwide almost reached 250,000.