MULTILATERAL development banks (MDBs) may extend a total of $3.733 billion to assist the Philippines in its effort to address the coronavirus 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.
Data provided by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and World Bank showed the amount covers nine projects, including those that have already been approved and those in the pipeline. The list includes both loans and grants extended to the Philippines.
Six of these projects worth $2.333 billion will be financed by the Manila-based MDB, while the remaining three projects worth $1.4 billion will be financed by the Washington-based lender.
ADB
The ADB’s projects comprise four approved projects, including the $200-million Additional Financing for the Social Protection Support Program, which was approved on Monday.
ADB said the loan will support the Philippine government’s effort to provide emergency cash subsidies to vulnerable households during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The loan will contribute to the $726 million required to provide emergency subsidies to 4Ps households in April and May 2020.
“This global pandemic, of a kind not seen in the last century, has disrupted the livelihoods of millions of Filipinos and could set back the very substantial gains the country has made in reducing poverty in recent years,” said ADB Vice President Ahmed M. Saeed. “The new loan supports the government’s emergency subsidy program, which was designed to help vulnerable households get through this very difficult period and avoid falling into poverty.”
The approved projects were the $1.5-billion loan from the ADB’s $13.5-billion countercyclical fund allocated for Covid-19 projects in the region.
The project is composed of loans—the $1.25-billion Active Response and Expenditure Support Program and the $250-million Philippines Countercyclical Support Facility Pandemic Response Window.
“This assistance is our largest budget support loan to the Philippines ever and reflects our strong commitment to providing cornerstone assistance swiftly and effectively to help the country mitigate the pandemic’s devastating impact on Filipinos, particularly the poor and vulnerable, including women,” ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa said in a recent statement.
“Amid a global pandemic, the most vulnerable are developing countries, especially those with densely populated cities such as the Philippines. We commend the government for its leadership and clear actions in containing the spread of Covid-19, including scaling up its health response, enforcing an enhanced community quarantine in Luzon to save lives, and rolling out subsidy programs to affected segments of the population,” Asakawa added.
The ADB has also extended $5 million from its Technical Assistance Special Fund for implementing a Rapid Emergency Supplies Provision (RESP) assistance to design a sustainable solution for Covid-19 impact areas in the National Capital Region, through a public-private collaboration; and $3 million from the Asia Pacific Disaster Response Fund for the Covid-19 Emergency Response.
Projects in the pipeline include the $125-million Health Sector Emergency Assistance Loan and $800-million Expanded Social Assistance project.
While additional information regarding the Health Sector Emergency Assistance Loan, the Expanded Social Assistance project will be funded by both the ADB and the World Bank.
Data from ADB showed $500 million of the loan will be provided by ADB and $300 million by World Bank. While the project is not specifically Covid-19 related, it will help enhance efforts to extend the government’s social amelioration program.
World Bank
The World Bank has approved $600 million of its $1.4-billion assistance to the Philippines. The amount covered two loan projects approved this month.
The first loan, approved on April 9, is for the $500-million Third Risk Management Development Policy Loan. This will finance the creation of unified disaster rehabilitation and recovery planning framework by the local and national governments.
The loan will also fund efforts to integrate hazard and risk analysis in physical planning and policy development as well as multi-year investment plans; and to provide emergency cash transfer programs during shocks.
The other approved loan is for $100 million, approved on April 23. The Support Covid-19 Emergency Response aims to finance the purchase of personal protective equipment (PPE) such as goggles, gloves and gowns by the Department of Health (DOH).
“The World Bank is committed to supporting efforts to strengthen the Philippines’ capacity to prepare for and respond to natural disasters, as well as health and economic shocks like Covid-19,” Achim Fock, World Bank Acting Country Director for Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand, earlier said.
The amount will go to buying drugs such as antivirals, antibiotics and essential medicines; and medical supplies such as intensive care unit equipment and devices such as mechanical ventilators, cardiac monitors, portable x-ray machines; laboratory equipment and test kits.
The project will also support DOH’s effort to prepare guidance on standard design for hospital isolation and treatment centers to manage Severe Acute Respiratory Infections (SARI) patients, to be used in health facilities nationwide to ensure standards and quality of Covid-19 healthcare services.
Meanwhile, the only direct Covid-19 project included in the World Bank’s pipeline is the $500-million Philippines Emergency Covid-19 Response Development Policy Loan.
The proposed loan aims to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 on the poor and vulnerable households and provide financial relief to affected small and medium enterprises.
Image credits: Nonie Reyes