The government is readying P27.1 billion in funds for frontline services in the healthcare sector as well as economic relief for workers affected by community quarantine measures due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said on Tuesday.
“We have enough but limited resources, so our job is to make sure that we have sufficient funds for programs mitigating the adverse effects of Covid-19 on our economy,” Dominguez said in a statement, a day after President Rodrigo Duterte announced a stricter quarantine over Luzon island.
The Department of Finance broke down the fiscal support package as follows:
- The mobilization of an additional P3.1 billion to contribute directly to efforts to stop the spread of Covid-19, including the acquisition of test kits.
The funds came from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp., Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office and the Asian Development Bank; - P2.0 billion representing the initial budget set aside by the Department of Labor and Employment for social protection programs for vulnerable
workers, to be used for wage subsidy/financial support to Covid-19 affected establishments and workers; - Mobilization of an existing P1.2 billion in the Social Security System to cover unemployment benefits for dislocated workers;
- The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority’s (Tesda) Scholarship Programs amounting to P3 billion will support affected and
temporarily displaced workers through upskilling and reskilling. It is also offering free courses for all who would like to acquire new skills in the
convenience of their own homes, mobile phones and computers through the Tesda Online Program; - Various programs and projects of the Department of Tourism amounting to P14 billion from the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise
Zone Authority to support the tourism industry; - P2.8 billion for the Survival and Recovery Aid Program of the Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Credit Policy Council, which provides loans of up to P25,000 each at zero interest for smallholder farmers and fisherfolk affected by calamity and disasters. This initiative
includes a one-year moratorium without interest on payments of outstanding loan obligations of small farmers and fisherfolk borrowers under the
ACPC Credit Program amounting to P2.03 billion; and - P1 billion allotted by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) for its Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-Asenso (P3) Microfinancing special loan package
of the Small Business Corp. for affected micro entrepreneurs/micro, small and medium enterprises. Also included is the DTI’s ongoing
assistance in finding new supply sources and non-traditional markets for industries affected by supply chain disruptions and the conduct of trade and investment missions to support the continued operation of industry;
Additional support mechanisms identified by the Economic Development Cluster are as follows:
- A loan program of the Government Service Insurance System intended for affected government employees and retirees;
- Mobilization of funds from government-owned or -controlled corporations to assist airlines and the rest of the tourism industry;
- Programs of the largest government banks to help address the impact of the health emergency, such as the Development Bank of the Philippines’s Rehabilitation Support Program on Severe Events, which provides public and private institutions in areas declared under a state of calamity with low-interest loans under a simplified application procedure; and the Land Bank of the Philippines’s (Landbank) offer of restructured loan amortizations by giving longer tenor and grace periods, with the option of a fixed interest rate under the Landbank Calamity Rehabilitation Support; and
- The grant of temporary and rediscounting relief measures for financial institutions, as approved by the Monetary Board. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Gov. Benjamin Diokno earlier said that, “the MB is ready to deploy any or all its policy tools, as appropriate, to address all challenges to our own financial markets and growth prospects.”
Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado said funds for ‘Build, Build, Build’ projects and all other government projects being implemented, as well as those for implementation, were “available and government purchases for equipment and supplies needed by the Department of Health (DOH) and other vital goods and services, including those of the military and the police shall go on unhampered by the current situation.”
Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon Lopez said the DTI was working directly with various industry sectors to assure the continued supply and stable prices of
basic necessities and prime commodities.
The DTI has also imposed a price freeze on basic necessities, and has intensified its consumer protection measures to penalize and charge profiteers and hoarders, he said.
Agriculture Secretary William Dar said that in coordination with the Office of the President, DTI, DOH, Department of the Interior and Local Government, local government units and the Philippine National Police, the Department of Agriculture was implementing its Food Resiliency action plan to ensure access to safe and affordable food—initially for the residents of Metro Manila—including but not limited to rice, sugar, vegetables, root crops, eggs, meat and poultry.
Meanwhile, Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said the Department of Energy and industry stakeholders had agreed to coordinate to provide uninterrupted supply of petroleum products and electricity nationwide.
Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia said the one-month community quarantine of the Metro Manila might have a “transitory impact” on the economy, but close monitoring was needed for necessary adjustments. Movement of goods and trade will remain unhindered, he said.
The central bank chief was more optimistic. “There is no reason to believe that the Covid-19 crisis could severely cut the Philippine growth momentum. The truth is that the economic fundamentals are on our side. Even under the worst possible scenario, the Philippines can still grow this year and in the medium term by about 6 percent,” Diokno said. (PressONE.ph)
