The country’s Covid-19 vaccination pace is picking up with the number of jabs administered nationwide reaching 26,677,269 doses, the National Task Force Against Covid-19 (NTF) reported on Friday. Based on NTF data as of Aug. 12, a total of 12,182,006, or 17.19 percent of eligible Filipinos targeted for the Covid-19 vaccination program, are now fully inoculated and the more than 14 million others with the first dose. Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., the NTF Chief Implementer, said the government is on a more aggressive vaccination drive amid the threat of the Delta variant. “We got the commitment of our local government
At least 14 countries and jurisdictions have been removed from the Philippines’ “green” list, Malacañang said on Friday. The latest development came after the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) approved Thursday the updated list of “green” countries and jurisdictions classified as “low-risk” for the coronavirus disease 2019, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a press statement. “The Inter-Agency Task Force on Thursday, August 12, 2021, approved and updated the list of considered ‘Green’ countries/jurisdictions/territories,” said Roque, who concurrently acts as IATF-EID spokesperson. Antigua and Barbuda, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Dominica, Kosovo, Laos, Marshall Islands, Moldova, North
The head of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Friday assured that there is no shortage of medical-grade oxygen tanks in the country, saying the use and hoarding of unprescribed oxygen tanks may lead to injuries or death. In a virtual briefing, FDA Director-General Eric Domingo said there has been no shortage of oxygen tanks in any part of the country, with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) reporting that less than 50 percent of the manufacturing capability of oxygen plants are in use. Medical-grade oxygen, he said, is classified as a drug under FDA Circular 2014-018 as
The state-owned Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the Department of Agriculture (DA) to facilitate the disbursement of financial assistance to the agriculture sector. DBP president and chief executive officer Emmanuel Herbosa said under the agreement, the bank would provide the disbursement channels to implement the DA’s initiatives on direct cash or loan interest rate subsidy and other forms of assistance to qualified agro-fishery enterprises, agriculture cooperatives, farmers, fisherfolk, and other agricultural workers. “(The) DBP and DA will continue to work on an expanded alliance to promote the growth potential of agribusinesses
People aged 65 and above who intend to join next year’s national elections will be allowed to go out for the filing of Certificates of Candidacy (COC) in October, Malacañang said on Friday. In a press statement, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said senior citizens who want to run for a national office would be recognized as “Authorized Persons Outside of Residence (APOR)” from Oct. 1 to 8. This developed after the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) allowed Filipinos 65 years old and above to file their COC before the Commission on Elections (Comelec). “The
The Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) will be needing an additional PHP7.5 billion for the repatriation of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) displaced by coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. OWWA Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac said Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III has requested for the said amount to be used for the repatriation of OFWs for the month of September until December. “Our good Secretary Bello has requested for an additional of PHP7.5 billion which will be utilized for the remainder of the year,” he said in a virtual forum on Friday. The OWWA chief added that the PHP5.2 billion which was
