Egypt reported on Monday 47 new coronavirus cases and one more death, said health minister Hala Zayed.

The total number of confirmed cases now stands at 656, with the total death toll rising to 41.

In a separate statement, the ministry said the new fatality was a 44-year-old woman from Cairo who passed away upon arrival at the isolation hospital.

The statement added that 18 people -- two foreigners and 16 Egyptians -- have fully recovered and left isolation hospitals. The total number of recoveries has thus increased to 150 from a total of 196 cases whose test results turned from positive to negative.

Zayed’s statement was made during a meeting with Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly to follow up on the health ministry’s efforts to contain the coronavirus outbreak.Zayed stated there are currently 26 laboratories across governorates to conduct PCR tests, and that there will be more in the next 48 hours.

Zayed briefed Madbouly on the geographical distribution of the cases, and on the tracking and investigation work of the ministry’s teams.

They also discussed the availability of various medical supplies at the ministry's hospitals.

Egypt’s health ministry spokesperson Khaled Meghad said on Saturday that some villages have been isolated in 10 governorates in a bid to stop any possible spread of coronavirus.

Zayed said on Friday that Egypt has a sufficient number of IC beds and ventilators and is being supplied with more.

She told MBC Masr satellite channel over the phone that Egypt has a purchase plan to make protective gear available despite the global shortage.

Egypt has already halted international flights, banned mass gatherings, shuttered cinemas, mosques and churches, and suspended communal prayers in an effort to slow the spread of the virus that claimed the lives of thousands of people around the world.

A nationwide curfew is also in effect daily from 7 pm to 6 am until 7 April.

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