DTI lists industries that are allowed to operate under MECQ

Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez has released a list of industries allowed to operate — either on limited or full capacity — during the implementation of modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) in NCR Plus.

The list shows that at least 10 more industries, including dental and rehabilitation clinics , have been allowed to operate under the MECQ at 50% capacity on-site. 

Aside from those, other industries allowed to reopen at half capacity on-site include:

• veterinary clinics
• media establishments
• banks, pawnshops, money transfer services
• capital markets
• water supply, janitorial/sanitation services
• energy sector
• telecommunication companies, internet service provider, cable television provider
• airline and aircraft maintenance pilots and crew employees of aviation schools
• ship captains and crew of shipyard operations and repair

On the other hand, industries allowed to operate at full capacity under MECQ are:

• public and private hospitals
• health emergency and frontline services
• medicine manufacturers
• industries involved agriculture
• logistics service provides
• manufacturing related to food and essential goods
• companies which manufacture construction materials
• essential retail trade groceries , hardware office supplies, bicycle and laundry shops
• water refilling stations
• restaurants and kiosks limited to take out and delivery
• financial service provides
• Business Process Outsourcing
• public transport

Meanwhile, establishments that are still not allowed to operate during the MECQ are:

• Entertainment venues with live performers, cinemas
• Recreational venues such as internet cafes, arcades, etc.
• Amusement parks
• Outdoor sports courts or venues for contact sports
• Indoor sports courts or venues, gyms, spas, swimming pools etc.
• Casinos, horse racing, cockfighting and operation of cockpits, lottery and betting shops, and other gaming establishments except for the draws conducted by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office
• Indoor visitor or tourist attractions, libraries, archives, museums, galleries, and cultural shows and exhibits
• Outdoor tourist attractions
• Venues for meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions
• Personal care services which includes beauty salons, beauty parlors, medical aesthetic clinics, etc. Homes service of these activities are also not allowed
• Indoor dine-in services

Only hotels or accommodation establishments with valid accreditation from the Department of Tourism will be allowed to accept guests for legitimate purposes, according to the DTI.

As for age restrictions, Lopez said local government units (LGUs) can lower the age restriction for those allowed to go outside their homes for essential reasons to 15 years.

NCR Plus covers Metro Manila, Laguna, Bulacan, Cavite and Rizal. The MECQ protocol started on April 12 and will last until the end of the month.

The Philippines has 146,519 active COVID-19 cases as of April 11, 2021.
Of this number, at least 58,000 new COVID-19 cases were recorded in Metro Manila alone in the last two weeks. —KBK, GMA News