Tuesday, Iraq began vaccinating doctors after receiving 50,000 doses of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine Tuesday.

In the medical city in Baghdad, which until the eighties had a good reputation in the Arab world but today suffers from deterioration, doctors received the first doses of the vaccine in the presence of the press.

Iraqi Health Minister Hassan Al-Tamimi told France Press that the vaccination had begun, adding that "priority is given to workers in the health sector in Corona centers."

He also said that vaccinations in health centers in popular and remote areas should begin on Wednesday.

The first doses arrived on a plane that landed in Baghdad at night, and it is a "gift to the Iraqi people," according to the Chinese embassy. In parallel, the Ministry of Health announced that Baghdad had requested two million additional doses of the Chinese vaccine.

Earlier Monday, the Ministry of Health announced that it had launched a website through which residents would register an appointment to receive the vaccine "for free," but the site was not effective on Tuesday, as journalists noted in AFP.

In addition to the Sinopharm vaccine, Iraq is supposed to receive two million doses of the British "AstraZeneca" vaccine through the COVAX mechanism, which aims to support the poorest countries. Also, Baghdad, which is experiencing an unprecedented economic crisis, confirms that it has previously requested 1.5 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine, which it will buy through a loan from the World Bank.

While no Iraqi citizen has yet received the vaccine, two current senior officials confirmed to AFP and another former official, in January that they had received at least a dose of a "Chinese vaccine."

The officials said that a well-known politician in the country received 1,000 doses through contacts in China, which he later distributed to a number of deputies and government officials.

In a country that has been suffering for decades from a shortage of medicines and doctors and a decline in hospitals, few Iraqis have confidence in the health system, as many pandemic patients receive treatment at home, while the authorities have been facing for months criticism for their management of the pandemic crisis.

A recent World Bank poll showed that only 39 percent of the 10,000 Iraqis who participated in it support receiving a vaccine, while only 42 percent of health workers in the country support it.

Abu Muhammad, a shopkeeper in Karrada in central Baghdad, told France Presse, "The arrival of the vaccine is neither offered nor delayed. We do not trust those who do not think of solving the problems of society."

This comes as the country faces a second pandemic wave, with more than 3,000 daily infections during the past few months. Since Feb. 19, the authorities have imposed lockdown measures to contain cases, including curfews and a comprehensive closure on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

To date, Iraq has officially recorded 703,778 injuries, including 13,458 deaths.

Tuesday, the Ministry of Health confirmed that it would receive a total of 16 million doses of vaccines through the COVAX mechanism. These doses would allow 20 percent of the population, or eight million Iraqis, to be vaccinated, but Baghdad’s strategy for vaccinations is not yet clear.

This is especially due to the fact that there has not been a vote yet in Parliament since the fall, on the state budget, which includes the health budget.