Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III
MANILA – The government has now additional funds for the acquisition of test kits and implementation of measures against the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said.
In a Viber message to journalists Friday, Dominguez said the Department of Finance (DOF) has sourced PHP2.5 billion from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) and PHP450 million from the Philippine Charity Sweepstake Office (PCSO).
“Moreover, the DOF successfully negotiated for the ADB to give a USD3-million grant to the DOH for COVID19 control,” he added.
The Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Thursday said it will make available USD200 million through its Supply Chain Finance Program for companies that manufacture and distribute medicines and other items needed to address Covid-19.
Last Tuesday, members of the Economic Development Council (EDC) recommended the approval of additional PHP2.82-billion funding for Covid-19-related measures.
Dominguez said Budget and Management Secretary Weldell Avisado has assured him that funding for projects under the government’s infrastructure program and other government projects remain available.
“Government purchases for equipment and supplies needed by the DOH (Department of Health) and other vital goods and services, including those of the military and the police, shall go on unhampered by the current situation,” Avisado said in his message to Dominguez, who then shared it to journalists. (PNA)
