The Japanese government says smartphone users will be able to download a coronavirus contact-tracing app starting Friday.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Nishimura Yasutoshi, the minister in charge of the government's coronavirus response, said he wants people to install the app to protect lives.

The Japanese government is considering the adoption of a smartphone app that would allow authorities to quickly identify people who may have been exposed to those infected with the new coronavirus.

The app will be similar to the one developed and introduced in Singapore. If users of smartphones loaded with the app come into close proximity, the handsets will receive each other's phone number and record it in an encrypted form.