The Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Tuesday emphasized the need to implement COVID-19 precautionary measures so as to contain the spread of the virus.

"As COVID-19 cases continue to surge and our intensive care units operate at maximum capacity, it is imperative that we do not lose sight of precautionary measures," Ahmed said on Tuesday.

"Save your life; save someone else's life and support our health workers by wearing a mask," the Ethiopian Prime Minister added.

The prime minister's call came a day after the Ministry of Health announced on Monday that the East African country will launch a face mask wearing campaign in the first weeks of 2021 as part of renewed anti-COVID-19 efforts. 

The minister said the campaign is aimed at reviving the waning habit of wearing face masks in public.

With educational institutions recently starting classes after an eight-month break, the face mask wearing campaign will be carried out to stem any possible significant rise in COVID-19 cases in schools and universities.

Ethiopia, which confirmed its first case of COVID-19 on March 13 and its first COVID-19 related death on April 15, has as of Tuesday morning recorded 123,145 COVID-19 cases and 1,912 COVID-19 related deaths. The figures also make Ethiopia the worst affected country by the pandemic in the East Africa region.

The Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, which hosts a number of international and continental organizations such as the headquarters of the African Union (AU) and the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), is presently the hotbed of COVID-19 infection in the country, with the most positive cases.

According to the ministry, some 109,846 patients who tested positive for COVID-19 had recovered as of Tuesday morning.

Ethiopia, which had declared a five-month-long state of emergency on April 8 to minimize the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, has been loosening the preventive measures since early October, as the state of emergency rule expired.

The Ethiopian government is recently advising the public to adhere to the recommended safety measures so as to contain the possible second wave of COVID-19 outbreak.