MANILA – Initiatives of the national government, through the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF), and local chief executives in the National Capital Region (NCR) have resulted in “downward trends” in coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases.
Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chair Benhur Abalos said OCTA Research cited nine cities in the NCR that recorded a negative growth rate from April 9 to 15.
Data released by OCTA Research on Friday showed the reproduction rate is at 1.16 for April 9 to 15, down from the 1.61 on March 29 to April 4, when the enhanced community quarantine was first imposed.
Downward trends were recorded in the following cities: Manila, -8 percent growth rate; Makati, -1 percent; Taguig, -13 percent; Mandaluyong, -6 percent; Valenzuela, -3 percent; Pasay, -12 percent; Marikina, -15 percent; Muntinlupa, -17 percent; and Navotas, -13 percent.
Areas under granular lockdowns likewise decreased as Abalos said there are only 24, down from 132 last March 29.
Aggressive contact tracing, mass testing, isolation, and granular lockdowns decreased reproduction rate in NCR, considered the epicenter of Covid-19, according to Abalos.
“We have seen how helpful these measures that we’ve imposed are, as the trend continues to spiral down. I am confident that while we sustain these strategies as we are rolling out our immunization drive against the virus, we can further reduce the cases and deaths,” he said in a news release on Saturday.
“I am very thankful for the coordinated and unified efforts of our national government, through the IATF and the LGUs (local government units), down to barangay level, to help prevent the spread of the virus across the region.”
Quoting experts, Abalos said the average number of new Covid-19 cases reported per day in the NCR was 5,085 in the past week, with a one-week growth rate of -0.4 percent while the positivity rate was 24 percent.
He expressed hope that the downward trends will continue, not just in the NCR but in the entire country as well, constantly reminding the public to not let their guards down and still consistently observe basic health protocols.
“Negligence and complacency will bring us to nowhere in our fight against Covid-19. My appeal to everyone is to still wear your face masks and face shields, observe physical distancing, and regularly sanitize to decrease the transmission of the virus,” Abalos said. (PR)
