MANILA -- The World Bank said Friday it approved a $500 million (P25.2 billion) loan to the Philippines to help the Southeast Asian nation fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
The financing is part of the Washington-based lender's $14-billion fast-track package to help nations deal with the disease that has killed tens of thousands around the world.
"The World Bank is committed to supporting efforts to strengthen the Philippines’ capacity to prepare for and respond to natural disasters as well as health and economic shocks like COVID-19," said Achim Fock, World Bank Acting Country Director for Brunei, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand.
"Natural disasters and pandemics disproportionately hurt poor families and communities. Enhancing risk management and the capacity to address these challenges can help ensure that the Philippines can sustain progress in poverty reduction," he said.
The $500 million loan is part of a broader package that aims to help the Philippines build disaster resilience, the World Bank said.
As of Thursday, the Philippines confirmed 4,076 COVID-19 cases including 203 deaths and 124 recoveries. Luzon, home to half of its 100 million population, is on lockdown until April 30 to fight the spread of the disease.
source: news.abs-cbn.com
MANILA - Former senator Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. has tested positive for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) but his condition has started to improve, his spokesperson said Tuesday.
In a statement posted on Marcos' Facebook account, his spokesperson Victor Rodriguez said the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine released the former lawmaker's test result on March 28.
“Gumaganda na ang kondisyong pangkalusugan ni dating Sen. Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos, Jr. makaraang ihayag sa resulta ng clinical test na isinagawa ng Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) na siya’y positibo sa CoVid19,” Rodriguez said.
(The health condition of former Sen. Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. is improving after RITM released his test results showing he is positive for COVID-19.)
His sister Sen. Imee Marcos had bared last week that Marcos was "unwell" and took the coronavirus test.
Marcos is undergoing treatment at an "isolation area," his spokesperson said.
The former senator, son of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, had come from Spain, where tens of thousands had contracted the virus.
He said he went to a hospital on March 14 after experiencing chest pains but went home as too many patients were waiting at the time.
Rodriguez said Marcos left isolation on March 22 as he was rushed to the emergency room of an undisclosed hospital for having difficulty breathing.
He was then tested for COVID-19 and told to undergo self-quarantine.
source: news.abs-cbn.com
MANILA - The number of COVID-19 cases in the Philippines has climbed to 380, as 73 new patients were recorded, the Department of Health said Sunday.
Six more people died from the disease, raising the toll to 25, while the number of patients who recovered increased to 15, according to DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire.
In an earlier interview on ANC, Vergeire said most of the patients who recovered do not have underlying conditions and are in the middle-aged group.
Four patients, though, were from the vulnerable group of the elderly, she added.
COVID-19 may be fatal for the elderly, the immunocompromised, and those with underlying medical condition but 80 percent of cases globally showed a high chance of recovery "without needing special treatment," according to the World Health Organization.
The virus, which emerged from the Chinese city of Wuhan in late December, has killed 12,725 worldwide as worst-hit Italy reported a one-day record number of deaths at nearly 800, with the country's overall toll shooting past 4,800.
Nearly one billion people around the world were confined to their homes as governments implement home quarantine in a bid to halt the pandemic.
with reports from Agence France-Presse
MANILA - The Philippines on Saturday confirmed 77 new cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), raising the country's tally to 307.
The Department of Health (DOH) also said that a 73-year-old woman from San Juan City, who had no recent travel history or exposure to a COVID-19 patient, had also died from the disease. She's the country's 19th fatality.
Meanwhile, 5 more people had recovered from COVID-19, bringing the total tally of recoveries to 13.
The health department said Saturday it would speed up testing for the virus, as more laboratories were opening up.
The government has also designated 3 state hospitals for COVID-19 patients as private facilities were getting overwhelmed with those diagnosed with the virus and those showing symptoms.
source: news.abs-cbn.com
