The Philippines has reached its target of conducting 30,000 daily tests for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) ahead of schedule, which is May 31, according to Malacañang.
Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a televised briefing that the country’s testing capacity now stands at 32,100, more than double than last week, which was only at 11,000.
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He also noted that they aim to build 66 more testing laboratories in the country by the end of May, as well as to increase testing capacity to 50,000 by June.
“Our first step to increasing the number of daily tests conducted is to expand our testing capacity. This means more accredited laboratories and more automated machines so that we are capable of testing up to 30,000 plus per day,” Roque said.
The government plans to test up to two percent of the country’s population as part of its fight against the disease.
The country has so far tested over 270,000 individuals, according to the online tracker of the Department of Health.
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