At this very moment, there is most definitely a conversation between two Egyptians on whether they trust the government’s official numbers and the health ministry’s capacity to combat the worldwide pandemic. Earlier last week, just right after the announcement of the suspension of schools and universities for two weeks, I noticed the panic slowly sweep across Egypt. Conversations on coronavirus came to be the centre of every workplace, household and public space. A taxi driver expressed to me his concerns, “I am very worried, I don’t think our government has the capacity to deal with such a pandemic,” he told me, “the fact that they suspended the schools means that the number is probably larger.” Then came the news of shutting down of airports and suspension of international flights. Speaking to TV presenter Amr Adib last night, Dr. Khaled Al-Anani, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, noted that the losses in the tourism sector after suspension of flights would amount to a staggering one billion dollars per month. “This is for the protection of our people and our guests,” he said, “we are not looking at profits or tourism money.” The…
