ADDIS ABABA,

Ethiopia’s confirmed COVID-19 cases reached 40,671 after 1,638 new cases were confirmed on Sunday, the country’s Ministry of Health said.

The ministry said in a statement that 16 more patients succumbed to illnesses related to the COVID-19 pandemic, which brought the total number of COVID-19 related deaths in the East African country to 678.

According to the ministry, some 14,995 patients who tested positive for COVID-19 have recovered, including 515 in the last 24-hour period.

The ministry also said that a total of 24,996 COVID-19 patients are still undergoing medical treatment, including 291 in severe condition.

Ethiopia, Africa’s second-most populous nation with about 107 million people, has the highest number of COVID-19 cases in East Africa.

The country, however, has a far lower number of recoveries as compared to Kenya, the region’s second-most affected country.

Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa is currently the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, accounting for about 70 percent of all confirmed COVID-19 cases, according to the ministry.

Ethiopia confirmed its first case of COVID-19 on March 13.

The country has so far conducted 757,057 COVID-19 medical tests, including 20,153 tests during the last 24-hour period, according to the ministry.

Amid the rapid spread of the virus in recent weeks, the government is intensifying its mass COVID-19 testing campaign.

The Ethiopian government is mobilizing resources to ensure there is no shortage of laboratory materials and quarantine centers.

Ethiopia is also boosting its COVID-19 testing capacity at border points with neighboring countries.

The country has already officially launched a nationwide month-long testing campaign, which the Ethiopian government said “will determine the next steps to undertake in the new year,” which will start on Sept. 11.

As the country strengthened the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, Chinese engagement has injected much-needed momentum in Ethiopia’s anti-pandemic efforts.

Earlier this month, Chinese technology and social media giant ByteDance donated 100,000 COVID-19 testing kits in support of Ethiopia’s anti-COVID-19 pandemic efforts. (Xinhua)