COLOMBO, April 17 (Xinhua) -- The Sri Lanka Overseas Chinese Association, on Friday donated medical supplies which included PPE gowns and surgical masks, to the Sri Lankan government, to support the island country in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Residents wearing a facemask walk past St. Anthony's church during a government-imposed nationwide lockdown as a preventive measure against the COVID-19 coronavirus in Colombo on April 11, 2020. (Photo: AFP)

The donation, which included 1,050 PPE gowns and 38,000 surgical masks, was handed over to Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa at a ceremony in Colombo.

The goods were shipped onboard a China Eastern Airlines who offered free shipping to Bandaranaike International Airport from China.

Prime Minister Rajapaksa thanked the Chinese government and its people for the donation of medical supplies. The Sri Lanka Overseas Chinese Association had provided assistance to consolidate and strengthen the friendship between the two peoples during many hard times in Sri Lanka.

President of Sri Lanka Overseas Chinese Association Zhang Xudong thanked Prime Minister Rajapaksa for supporting China in its battle against COVID-19 and added that China now strongly supported Sri Lanka in its fight against the pandemic.

He said to support Sri Lanka, the Sri Lanka Overseas Chinese Association launched a donation initiative to all overseas Chinese residents in Sri Lanka who actively contributed towards the Sri Lankan society and all donations made by them were used to purchase the medical supplies.

The aid materials will be distributed to various hospitals by Sri Lanka's Ministry of Health.

Sri Lanka presently remains under an islandwide curfew as over 230 people were infected with COVID-19 while seven deaths have been reported.

Over 100 people remain under medical observation in the designated hospitals across the country. Enditem