40 new hospitals worldwide conduct clinical trials for COVID-19 cure: WHO

CAIRO – 11 June 2020: “A total number of 40 new hospitals around the world are conducting clinical trials for treatments for COVID-19 pandemic,” said Ahmed el-Manzary, the WHO regional director for Middle East, in a Wednesday press conference in Cairo.

Manzary explained that 100 states are participating in the clinical trials, and that a total number of 1.5 million tests for COVID-19 were made available, through WHO, in 129 countries worldwide.

He further said that more than 7 million COVID-19 infections and more than 400,000 deaths were reported worldwide, where the figures recorded in MENA region were 670,000 infections, and 15,000 deaths, representing around 10 percent of the worldwide figure.

Mazary explained that the increasing figure in the region is a worrying development at the time the number of cases is decreasing in Europe.

The conference has discussed the developments of COVID-19 on the regional and international level, in addition to the updated WHO guidelines on the use of cloth masks.

During the conference, the resumption of pilgrimage has been discussed, where WHO representatives stressed that there should be intensified measures to protect against the spread of the virus, and that the organization is in direct communication with Saudi Arabia and a full supervision of the mechanism of resuming pilgrimage.

For her part, Maha Talaat, the regional consultant for Antimicrobial Resistance, confirmed that the second wave of the coronavirus has not yet reached Egypt, and that the organization is monitoring infections at rates that are not huge.

“Do not focus on the second wave, but pay attention to the precautionary measures and follow the health guidelines,” Talaat added.