Manila City Mayor Francisco ‘Isko Moreno’ Domagoso announces that the local government has closed a deal for the acquisition of 800,000 vaccines under a tripartite agreement with NTF, DOH, and AstraZeneca.
In December 2020, Manila City local government said it prepared an additional P1.1 billion budget for its own COVID-19 vaccination program for 2021.
Moreno told CNN Philippines that Manila LGU would realign its infrastructure budget for its COVID-19 immunization program.
“’Yung 2021 na preparation ng annual budget, nag-float kami na what we call ‘soft budgeting,’ wherein ‘yung mga infrastructure for road improvement and all other things, itinabi muna namin,” he said.
“Nilagay namin sa what we call soft budgeting. At doon possibleng kunin pa at magkaroon kami ng access about P1.1 billion. Ito, on top of the P250 million,” he added.
Aside from the additional P 1.1 billion funds, Mayor Isko said the Manila City government would earmark P250 million to purchase COVID-19 vaccines once allowed by the national government.
Mayor Isko said they would prioritize around 326,330 people in the local vaccination program. This list includes senior citizens, medical frontliners, and the working-age group.
Also read: AstraZeneca to allot more COVID-19 vaccines for PH
Metro Manila LGUs secure COVID-19 vaccine deals with AstraZeneca
Yesterday, Caloocan City government secured a supply of 600,000 doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines that would be administered free for its residents.
The good news was announced by Caloocan City Mayor Oscar “Oca” Malapitan on Sunday, adding 300,000 residents would get the first batch of AstraZeneca vaccines.
Earlier, the mayor said that the Caloocan city government allotted a budget of P125 million to buy AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines for its people.
On Monday, Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto announced they also signed an agreement with AstraZeneca for 400,000 doses of coronavirus vaccines worth P100 million.
Early this month, Ayala Corp. ordered 450,000 doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine worth P120 million, half of which would be donated to the government.
Fernando Zobel de Ayala, Ayala Corp. chief operating officer said the private sector would assist the government in the vaccines’ procurement and distribution nationwide.
AstraZeneca said earlier its COVID-19 vaccine was 70% effective in crucial trials and could be up to 90% effective.