The whole world, but most especially the Philippines, is reeling because of another wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. Many sectors believe that a Covid-19 vaccine rollout would be the solution to the situation we are in. This also covers the economy because so many have already been financially affected because of the loss of their primary income.
Why the Covid-19 Vaccine Rollout Will Fuel Our Economy
At present, the government is mulling the extension of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in the so-called NCR Plus bubble until April 18. This is supposed to slow down the spread of COVID-19 but many sectors also believe that it should be coupled with the rollout of vaccines. The immunity from the vaccines will certainly jumpstart our laggard economy.
According to BDO Unibank chief investment officer Frederico Rafael “Fritz” D. Ocampo, it is imperative that these two be implemented for things to get back to normal.
“The pandemic is a public health issue, so everybody wants to reopen the economy. Everybody wants to get back to normal. But the main issue is controlling the spread and accelerating the Covid-19 vaccine rollout. Unless we’re able to do these two top of mind and priority issues, then all of our dreams of getting back to normal will remain just a dream,” he said in an interview with CNN Philippines.
How the Lockdown is Affecting Us
“What we have learned during the past year is when you have prolonged mobility restrictions, especially when you have a total lockdown of the economy, it just creates a lot of unemployed people and we tend to worsen the problem.”
Ocampo also lamented the unenviable task facing the government right now amid the continuous surge of COVID-19 cases.
“It’s a major challenge. The balancing act that you have to do right now is saving lives against saving jobs or saving the economy,” he added. “We have to contain COVID and we have to accelerate the delivery of vaccines and start rolling them out in a more aggressive way. The sooner we do that, then the better it will be for our recovery, our reopening of the Philippine economy.”
According to OCTA Research, the number of COVID-19 cases is expected to continue to surge for the next couple of weeks despite the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases’ decision to place NCR Plus (Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal) under a general community quarantine bubble from March 22 to April 4.
The ECQ Bubble
Under the ECQ bubble, travel to and from Metro Manila and the four adjacent provinces is not allowed unless deemed essential. These areas were also placed under a 10PM to 5AM curfew. With all these restrictions, the government is hoping that this curb the increase in COVID-19 cases.
On March 29, the Philippines recorded 10,016 more COVID-19 cases, bringing the total count of newly-confirmed infections to 731,894, of which 115,495 are active cases.
The ARISE Bill
To help jumpstart the economy, Ocampo undrescored the recovery of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs). He said that these should likewise be one of the priorities.
“The proposed ARISE (Accelerated Recovery and Investments Stimulus for the Economy of the Philippines) bill is still in the backburner. The longer we prolong the pain of the MSMEs, the more people will lose their jobs. The scarring could be permanent,” he said.
The ARISE Bill, passed by the House of Representatives in third and final reading last year seeks to extend support to micro, small, and medium enterprises and other sectors affected by the pandemic.
“We cannot talk yet of how they (MSMEs) are rebuilding because they’re still in pain. More and more companies have declared downsizing this late in the game. They need assistance and they need it now. If we assist them, they’ll hire their old workers back. And these workers will consume, and that’s what we need. We are a service-driven economy,” Ocampo added.
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Napakalaki talaga ng epekto nitong pandemic sa kabuhayan ng tao hindi lang ng indibidual lalo na ng buong Bansa..Hope na this would end soon
This is more understandable than CNN news
hahahaha kaloka ka mommy hihihi
Sobrang laki talaga ng epekto sa economy natin ang pandemic na to, nakakalungkot dahil maraming nawalan ng trabaho, pero buti nlang may mga Tao at Company pa rin na tumutulong para sa pagbangon ng ating bansa.At pagbangon ng ibang kumpanya na nagsara.
This blog post is so informative. A must-read post.
Tama po lahat tayo gusto na maging normanl ulit dahil sa laki ng impact na ginawa ng pandemya lahat apektado.
This is a silverlining among the MSME’s. The pandemic has affected many business and our economy has been thriving . Hoping that the vaccine roll out could really make a change.