The government of Rwanda has lifted a mask mandate for people in public, as the country continues to report decreased COVID-19 infections.

The lifting of the measure was announced by the Prime Minister's office following a cabinet meeting on Friday to review existing health measures regarding the pandemic.

"Wearing face masks is no longer mandatory," a statement by the PM's office read. "However people are encouraged to wear face masks indoors. The public is urged to get frequently tested while continuing to observe preventive measures."

Rwanda has so far recorded 129,895 COVID-19 infections with 1,459 fatalities.

The country continues to conduct a nationwide vaccination exercise in efforts to better protect the public from the virus.

By Friday, 9,028,849 people had received at least a first dose of the vaccines, with 8,494,713 people fully inoculated.

While the mask mandate was lifted, cabinet approved the continuation of other measures, including the requirement for passengers arriving passengers at the Kigali International Airport to produce a negative rapid test taken 72 hours prior to departure.