MANILA - Thousands of face masks, test kits and other supplies from China are set to arrive in the Philippines on Saturday to support the country's efforts to fight the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the Chinese Embassy in Manila said Friday.

In a tweet Friday, the embassy said around 100,000 test kits, 100,000 surgical masks, 10,000 N95 masks, and 10,000 personal protective equipment (PPEs) will arrive in Manila from Beijing.

LOOK!! The China-donated medical supplies include: 100,000 fast test kits, 100,000 surgical masks, 10,000 N95 masks, and 10,000 sets of personal protective equipment(PPEs). pic.twitter.com/vMMljyD9dF — ChineseEmbassyManila (@Chinaembmanila) March 20, 2020

The Embassy said it has been closely communicating with the Department of Health (DOH) “to ensure a speedy receiving” of the donations “so as to contribute to Philippine Government’s efforts in fighting the epidemic and benefit the Filipinos as soon as possible.”

Philippine Foreign Affairs chief Teodoro Locsin Jr. earlier announced that China committed to sending 100,000 testing kits, after Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian informed him of the donation through text message.

He said he was "asked to please alert the Customs to let the donation through pronto -- and the rest of the bureaucracy not to throw a monkey wrench."

The Philippines as of Saturday confirmed 230 cases of the respiratory disease that emerged from China late last year. The tally includes 18 deaths and 8 patients who recovered from the disease, according to the health department.

President Rodrigo Duterte placed Luzon under lockdown from Tuesday midnight until April 12 to arrest the coronavirus spread. Under his order, all households are under home quarantine, public transport is suspended, schools are closed, international travel is restricted, government work is suspended save for frontline employees, and private companies are urged to adopt work-from-home schemes.

Duterte has also placed the entire Philippines under a state of calamity to give the national and local governments access to critical quick response funds. -- With a report from Willard Cheng, ABS-CBN News