DOF bares how P82.5-B budget for COVID vax program will be sourced

The Department of Finance on Thursday gave some details on how the P82.5-billion budget for the state vaccination program will be funded, and assured the public the money is enough to inoculate 50 million Filipinos against COVID-19.

Under the 2021 General Appropriations Act, P82.5 billion is allotted for the project aimed to cover around 55% of the country's population.

Of the amount, the DOF said, P2.5 billion will come from the 2021 Department of Health (DOH) budget.

Meanwhile, P10 billion will be sourced from the COVID-19 vaccination program allocation under Republic Act (RA) No. 11494 or the Bayanihan To Recover As One Act or Bayanihan 2, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said in a statement.

Dominguez noted the remaining P70 billion will be sourced from loans provided by multilateral lenders, the Philippines’ bilateral partners, and/or the domestic market.

Also, Dominguez said the DOF is processing around P62.5 billion or approximately $1.3 billion through loans with multilateral banks to procure COVID-19 vaccines for adult Filipinos.

“These multilateral institutions include the Asian Development Bank (ADB), World Bank (WB) and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB),” he said.

Earlier reports indicated that the government is targeting to inoculate between 50 to 70 million adult Filipinos --aged 18 years old and above.

“We have 110 million Filipinos. Of the 110 million, around 40 million are below the ages of 18 and it is not recommended that teenagers and below get the vaccine. So, you knock off 40 million out of 110 million. That leaves you 70 million Filipinos potentially to vaccinate,” the Finance chief said.

So far, he added, COVID-19 vaccines allowed for use in the country is intended mainly for adults aged 18 years old and above, because clinical trials have not involved children yet.

Dominguez noted that initial computations of vaccination cost per person has been pegged at P1,300 --which already includes the required doses, syringe, storage, equipment, information campaign, monitoring  and other support services.

At P1,300 per person, the government would be able to inoculate roughly 57 to 60 million Filipinos out of the 70 million that need to be vaccinated, according to Dominguez.

“Now, that leaves you 13 million people. We expect the 13 million to be covered by the LGUs (local government units), the private sector, and of course,  there are the recusants—the guys who don't believe in vaccination,” he said.

“So, basically, we are going to be covered and I think we will be able easily now,  with the resources that we have raised,  to vaccinate 60 million Filipinos,” he pointed out.

For his part, Finance Undersecretary Mark Dennis Joven of the DOF’s International Finance Group (IFG) said the department has begun the process of negotiating with the World Bank and Asian Development Bank at least $800 million or about P39 billion in funds for the COVID-19 vaccination program through a project loan, with the DOH as implementing agency.

This financing support from the ADB and the WB carries low interest rates, with an average maturity period of at least 10 years, Joven noted.

Joven leads a task group on procurement and financing composed of representatives from the DOF, DOH and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) that reports directly to the National Task Force Against COVID-19 Chief Implementer and vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr.

According to Joven, “The budget is cut in two parts. It’s P70 billion plus P12.5 billion. The P70 billion along with the COVAX contribution would be sufficient to fund around 140 million doses of vaccines.”

He was referring to the COVAX Facility, a global initiative that brought together governments and vaccine manufacturers, including 64 high-income economies, to ensure the  fair and equitable access of all participating countries to COVID-19 vaccines.

Being a part of the COVAX facility, the Philippines is guaranteed access to  vaccine doses for at least 20% of its population.

Finally, the remaining P12.5 billion of the P82.5 billion COVID-19 vaccine budget will be spent on ancillary requirements such as materials, rollout, storage, distribution and other logistical and support services, according to Joven. —LBG, GMA News