More news about how the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines is being handled by the public and the government.
 |
| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1195844 |
Live births in Northern Mindanao or Region 10 have dropped during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, the Commission on Population and Development (PopCom) bared Wednesday.During a media forum here, PopCom-10 Assistant Director Richmond Charles Gajudo said the figures in 2020 and 2021 are the lowest in the past three decades based on the consolidated data from the Philippine Statistic Authority (PSA).The PSA data indicated that from 2020 and 2021, the average birth rate was 82,000; while between 2010 and 2019, birth rates were around 84,000 to 93,000 in the region."During the (height of) the pandemic, couples must have realized that it would be hard to have a newborn child," Gajudo said.He also said that during the peak of the pandemic, hospitals and other healthcare facilities were full of Covid-19 patients, which posed a challenge for those giving birth.Gajudo also credited the decreased childbirths to PopCom's fourth quarter activities to intensified outreach programs in the communities nationwide, where there was a high acceptance rate of implant contraceptives.
This is very counterintuitive seeing as even the population commission was expecting a baby boom.
The DOH admits the Philippines remains at low-risk for COVID-19.
 |
| https://mb.com.ph/2023/02/22/doh-ph-still-in-low-risk-status-for-covid-19/ |
The Philippines remains under low-risk classification for Covid-19, the Department of Health (DOH) said on Wednesday, Feb. 22.
In a brief statement, the DOH reported that only 832 cases of Covid-19 were recorded from Feb. 16 to 22.
“In terms of our case metrics, we remain at low risk case classification with an average daily attack rate of 0.12 cases per 100,000 population,” the DOH said.
However, the DOH noted a slight increase in the positivity rate. To note, positivity rate refers to the number of individuals who yielded positive results from among those who were tested for Covid-19.
“National positivity rate saw an increase of 1.8 percent from 1.6 percent from the previous week, while for NCR (National Capital Region), positivity rates declined to 1.7 percent from 1.8 percent,” it said.
The healthcare utilization rate is also at low-risk classification, the DOH said.
In the Eastern Visayas there are only 5 active cases at the moment!
 |
| https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1736457/active-covid-19-cases-in-eastern-visayas-down-to-5-doh |
Eastern Visayas has only five remaining cases of COVID-19 as of Monday, Feb. 27, according to the Department of Health (DOH).
Two of the active cases are in Tacloban City and one each in Barugo, Leyte; Marabut, Samar, and Biliran.
Since the pandemic broke out, the DOH has recorded 64,720 COVID-19 cases in the region.
Jelyn Lopez Malibago, DOH regional information officer, said there are no severe or critical cases due to the virus.
And yet they still treat the virus as if it is something deadly we all need to avoid as if it is ravaging the nation.
Ash Wednesday celebrations are now back to normal.
 |
| https://malaya.com.ph/news_news/manila-churches-resume-marking-foreheads-with-ashes/ |
FOR the first time since the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic hit the country, churches within the Archdiocese of Manila will go back to placing ashes on the foreheads of the faithful as Catholics observe Ash Wednesday today.
Circular No. 2023-17 issued by the Archdiocese of Manila stated ashes will no longer be sprinkled on the crown as practiced during the Ash Wednesday observances in the past years during the height of the pandemic.
“We will revert to the imposition of ashes on the forehead of the faithful,” said Manila Vice Chancellor Fr. Carmelo Arada.
For the first time since the pandemic? But last year they were putting ashes on the forehead too.
The Philippines is now a member of the world's largest trade pact. Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual says this will speed up recovery from the pandemic.
 |
| https://business.inquirer.net/388157/rcep-to-speed-up-ph-recovery-from-covid-19-pandemic-dti |
The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will hasten the country’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual said on Friday.
RCEP is the largest trade pact across the globe as its members include Association of Southeast Asian Nation states, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand.
“Surely mapapabilis (it will hasten the recovery) because the way to recover is to stimulate investment in our country, so new businesses can be established and new businesses will create jobs that were lost during the pandemic,” Pascual said in a press conference.
“Also, [it will] strengthen…create a possibility of strengthening our MSMEs (micro, small, and medium enterprises) to act as suppliers to bigger businesses that we established,” he added.
Following the Senate approval of the country’s entry into the RCEP, Pascual said necessary paperwork will have to be done within 30 days. Then, the certificate of ratification will be lodged. After 60 days, the Philippines’ membership in the RCEP will be in effect.
“From then, it’s already open… good news for investors, for our companies … they can take advantage of the provisions of RCEP,” Pascual said.
Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri earlier said the RCEP is seen to generate 1.4 million jobs by 2031.
Despite this, at least 100 organizations protested the RCEP’s ratification, claiming it will put the welfare of farmers and fishers, among others, at stake.
The greater effects of this trade pact will not be felt for years which makes Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual's comments about speeding up recovery from the pandemic speculation.
The Philippines is recovering just fine without this trade pact.
 |
| https://business.inquirer.net/388424/pandemic-spawns-small-businesses-that-are-here-to-stay |
“I did not plan to put up a business during the pandemic because from my point of view, it was really very risky,” recalls Donatella Chua, a foodie whose brand and moniker as the “The Croissant Lady” came full circle during the pandemic.
She plans to open up her brand for franchising in the future.
This story of “The Croissant Lady” is among the multitude of people whose businesses were able to take form and take off during one of the most tumultuous times in history.
According to a research done by the Philippine unit of Canada-based insurance giant Manulife Financial Corp., about four in 10 Filipinos established new businesses at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns.
The study, titled “Filipino entrepreneurship and the bayanihan spirit: The resurgence of micro and small businesses in the Philippines,” surveyed 500 people nationwide aged 18 to 55 in May of 2022. It offers insights into the inspiring world of how micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) have flourished during the pandemic.
According to Manulife Philippines, 41 percent of respondents started businesses during the pandemic, with up to 50 percent of them saying they are very likely to continue their operations in the new normal.
For 43 percent of those people, the main reason for starting a business is to earn income; 34 percent, to maintain financial stability, and 8 percent, to provide convenience and accessibility to people.
The same study also looked at the kind of businesses started during the pandemic. Some 41 percent, or the biggest bulk, went into food processing, while 30 percent started retail businesses and 24 percent went into the delivery of essential goods and services.
The Manulife research also found that Filipino consumers have patronized these businesses, with 65 percent of respondents saying they have availed of products and services from these MSMEs. Bayanihan or community spirit is cited as a strong motivator.
Of this number, 51 percent say that they are very likely to continue their patronage.
In hard times people find creative ways to survive.
COVID rates have increased slightly in Mindanao.
 |
| https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1735612/covid-19-positivity-rates-shoot-up-in-south-cotabato-misamis-oriental-monitor |
COVID-19 positivity rates soared in South Cotabato and Misamis Oriental from February 18-25, according to Octa Research Group, while it had a “negligible decrease” in Metro Manila during the same period.
Guido David, a fellow of the independent pandemic monitor, said in a tweet on Monday that the coronavirus positivity rate in South Cotabato and Misamis Oriental significantly increased from 2.8 to 13 percent and 4.3 to 6.5 percent, respectively, and that Metro Manila’s went down from 1.7 to 1.6 percent.
He further noted that COVID-19 positivity rates likewise rose in the following provinces :
- Batangas – 0.7 to 1.5 percent
- Bulacan – 0.7 to 1.3 percent
- Cavite – 1.4 to 2.1 percent
- Davao del Sur – 3.9 to 4.2 percent
- Iloilo – 1 to 1.1 percent
- Pampanga – 0.7 to 1.5 percent
- Pangasinan – 0.9 to 1.1 percent
He also said the coronavirus positivity rates dropped in Cebu and Negros Occidental from 1.4 to 0.8 percent and 1.8 to 0.8 percent, respectively.
As for Laguna province, Guido said the COVID-19 positivity rate still stood at 1.1 percent.
But they also dropped in Cebu and Negros Occidental.
Another festival is back on this time proving Baguio is resilient.
 |
| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1196065 |
After a three-year hiatus, the revival of the Panagbenga Festival this year is proving this city's resilience from any calamity, the same reason why it was conceptualized nearly 30 years ago.
"After the killer earthquake in 1990, we thought of a festival that the people of Baguio can participate in and they can own which also aims to bring in tourists for the economy to move again," said Mauricio Domogan, Baguio Flower Festival Foundation Inc. lifetime chairperson, on the sidelines of the street dancing parade on Saturday.
The first festival in 1996 was a one-day event. It was later extended to one week, further expanded to two weeks, then a month.
Domogan said the staging of the festival this year is as important as the first, considering their similar objectives -- to make the city rise again and uplift the lives of those affected by the crisis, this time the Covid-19 pandemic.
Domogan, who was mayor at the time the flower festival was born, said “the discussion was what to do to make the city recover, for the city to be visited by the tourists again, an activity that will bring the residents to contribute their time and talent for something that will benefit the whole city".
He admitted, however, that the number of visitors who joined the street dancing on Saturday did not breach the pre-pandemic level.
“Our having the festival this year shows our resiliency in any calamity. That despite the challenges, we stand up to show that we will be okay,” Domogan said.
The festival partially resumed last year sans crowd-drawing activities like the flower-themed floats due to health protocols, luring 45,000 visitors on its final weekend.
Baguio is so resilient they are leading the Philippines in tourism recovery.
 |
| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1196101 |
With over 50,000 visitors who flocked Baguio City to witness the return of the Panagbenga Festival, the Department of Tourism (DOT) teems with the hope that the City of Pines will lead the country towards post-pandemic recovery.
In a speech at the Burnham Park Grandstand after the grand float parade on Sunday, DOT Secretary Christina Frasco said that after a three-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic, indeed, Baguio is back.
“Panagbenga must continue to remain as a celebration of the season of blooming, a celebration of our rebirth from the pandemic period,” Frasco said.
“This festival inspires us that despite the dark times await a beautiful and colorful reckoning,” she added.
Frasco said President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. himself envisions the tourism transformation of the Philippines.
Therefore, she said people can expect a whole-of-government approach in the development of tourism, not only in Baguio but in the rest of the regions well.
“Baguio City has become a model city in the nation's pandemic response and especially post-pandemic, showing how innovation, as well as close community development and cooperation, can truly make for a sustainable smart city. Congratulations,” Frasco said.
Festivals are returning all over the Philippines so how does this make Baguio any different?
The DOH is discussing removing COVID restrictions from alert levels.
 |
| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1196284 |
Member agencies of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) have already convened and discussed the possible “decoupling” or separation of Covid-19 restrictions from the existing alert level system.
In a media forum on Tuesday, Department of Health (DOH) officer-in-charge Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the agency was represented by Assistant Secretary Beverly Ho at the meeting where survey questions for local government units were raised.
Vergeire disclosed two of the questions included the reporting frequency of the alert level system and the implementation of the minimum public health standards.
“Frequency of reporting of alert level system, it’s every 15 days currently, they were asked if they agree with once a month [reporting],” she said.
“If they agree that the minimum public health standards and restrictions should be within the authority of the local governments and no longer that of the national government,” she added.
Last year, the DOH said it would recommend the decoupling of restrictions from the alert levels to make them work like storm signals used by the weather bureau.
“There’s already a recommendation within the IATF but we cannot say yet because we need it sent again for ad referendum if all members would agree) and we would be informing all of you after that,” Vergeire said.
She emphasized that the IATF is already in the direction where it would like to "use the alert level system not as a prescribing tool for restrictions but a risk communication tool for local governments and the public to know what must be done in every risk level”.
Why is there still talk of restrictions of any kind whatsoever? The pandemic is over. Just do away with the alert system and restrictions altogether.
No comments:
Post a Comment