The Ministry of Health said it is highly concerned with the increasing spread of COVID-19 pandemic mainly due to negligence in taking preventive measures against the virus and has called on the public and stakeholders to pay due attention to prevent the pandemic.
Briefing journalists on Thursday Minister of Health Dr. Lia Tadesse said an average 13 percent COVID-19 positivity rate has been reported in the last ten days showing an increase of 4 percent two weeks.
She said the practice of wearing masks has declined significantly from 62.6 percent four months ago to 54 percent in Addis Ababa and 35 percent at national level. The number of severe COVID-19 cases has also increased nationwide, leading to scarcity of essential medical equipment like ventilators, particularly in Addis Ababa.
The country registered the highest ever 1,161 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, taking the nationwide tally to 161,974.
Ethiopia, Africa’s second-most populous nation, has so far reported the highest number of COVID-19 cases in the East Africa region.
According to the ministry, Ethiopia currently has some 23,138 active COVID-19 cases, of which 398 are said to be under severe health conditions.
According to the latest figures from the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Ethiopia’s COVID-19 cases accounted for about 4 percent of the African continent’s total confirmed cases.
MG/abj/APA