Metro Manila extends quarantine measures until September 7

Authorities in Metro Manila have announced that the capital of The Philippines will remain under the Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine (MECQ) until September 7.

The Philippines.- Authorities have announced that Manila will remain under the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) until September 7.

The Capital city moved from the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) to MECQ last week with the countermeasures to remain until the end of the month. However, the government decided to extend them for at least a week.

The Philippines recorded 18,528 new cases of Covid-19 on Sunday. However, the government is analysing so-called “granular” lockdowns, specifically targeting the outbreak area rather than putting the entire province under countermeasures.

Under the MECQ, casinos in the Entertainment City zone will remain closed. There have been no announcements on a possible reopening in the short term.

The Philippines expects to have 70 per cent of its population fully vaccinated by February 2022

Department of Health Secretary Francisco Duque III has said he expects the Philippines to achieve a 70 per cent vaccination rate for Covid-19 by February 2022.

He said the country is progressing at an average daily rate of nearly 400,000 vaccinations per day, however, the process has been slow due to delays in the arrival of vaccines. To date, only 12.2 per cent of the Philippines’ population has been fully vaccinated. 

Several Manila’s IRs have rolled out vaccination programmes in order to get their staff vaccinated. The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (PAGCOR) has announced a workforce immunisation rate of 94 per cent.

The regulator said 11,473 employees out of 12,176 were vaccinated against Covid-19 and added it hopes to complete the immunization of 100 per cent of its workforce.