US, Philippines seal joint intent to boost health cooperation

NEW YORK — The Philippines and the United States have signed a Joint Declaration of Intent to strengthen health cooperation between the two countries, with a goal of enabling Manila to become more self-reliant in its healthcare systems.

In a statement on Thursday (New York time), the US State Department said both nations have signified their intent to establish a framework that would provide the Philippines greater healthcare autonomy while strengthening its capacity to fight diseases such as HIV, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases.

Thomas Pigott, principal deputy spokesperson of the US State Department, said the health cooperation is part of the Trump administration's America First Global Health Strategy.

Under the Joint Declaration, Pigott said, the US and the Philippines will negotiate a five-year Strategic Objective Agreement.

"This new arrangement will save American and Filipino lives, increase the resilience of the Philippine health system through coordinated co-funding, and promote innovations in program delivery to slow the spread of infectious diseases like TB and HIV. The Trump Administration's America First Global Health Strategy helps safeguard Americans from health threats while enhancing the well-being of people in the region," Pigott said.

The Philippines is among the countries which have sealed Memoranda of Understanding with Washington under the America First Global Health Strategy. 

The State Department counts 30 MOUs under the strategy with multiple countries, representing over $20.6 billion in global health funding, including $7.8 billion in US assistance, and $7.8 billion in co-investment from recipient countries.

"This Joint Declaration of Intent commits to co-funding mutually agreed-upon global health objectives in the near future, furthering US-Philippine bilateral collaboration in the health sector," the statement added.

As of April 7, countries that have signed America First Global Health Strategy MOUs with the US include Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Guinea, Honduras, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Panama, the Philippines, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Tajikistan, and Uganda. — VDV, GMA News