Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has extended for another year a "state of calamity" imposed in the country at the start of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, dpa reported.

In a proclamation signed on Friday, Duterte extended the emergency measure until September 12, 2022.

Duterte first placed the country under the state of calamity for six months in March 2020 to help the government implement a coronavirus lockdown, and then extended it for another 12 months.

The Department of Health reported 17,964 additional cases of coronavirus infections in the Philippines on Friday, bringing the country's total caseload to more than 2.17 million. The death toll rose by 168 to 34,899, it added.

Source: Saudi Press Agency