NEDA Speaks on Possible Loss for PH Economy During Lockdown in NCR
NEDA – The National Economic and Development Authority revealed how much the Philippine economy may lose amid hard lockdown in the National Capital Region (NCR).
Undeniably, the presence of the Delta variant of COVID-19 in the Philippines sparked a lot of concerns and worries after what it did in India. It was first recorded in India and it brought the country to a devastating situation – many people were infected by coronavirus, hospitals reached their maximum capacity and ran out of resources, and a lot of people died.
The Delta variant was also recorded in Bangladesh, Malaysia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. It is also present in the United States and Thailand. This variant of concern also caused a surge in the COVID-19 cases in Indonesia.
Local transmissions of the Delta variant of COVID-19 were confirmed in PH. The Department of Health (DOH) previously stressed that it is not impossible for the variant to reach the country and what is important is to prepare for it.
Currently, stricter community quarantine measures are back in implementation in several areas in the country in the pursuit to curb the spread of COVID-19. Metro Manila will be under an Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) measure in August.
Businesses are worried that the PH economy will be shut down again in case the Delta variant will spread in the country. President Rodrigo Roa Duterte previously said that the economy may suffer “irreversible damage” in case another lockdown will take place.
Based on a report on ABS-CBN News, National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said that a hard lockdown in NCR may cost the PH economy Php 105 billion every week. It will also increase the number of poor Filipinos by up to 177,000.
Furthermore, based on the report, NEDA estimated that the unemployed Filipinos will rise by 444.000 amid a hard lockdown in NCR. The approved recommendation of placing the whole Metro Manila under ECQ is set for implementation starting August 6 to August 20.
According to Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua, the damage in the PH economy caused by the hard lockdown may be reversed by using the time to speed up the vaccination against COVID-19.
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