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THE
Asian Development Bank has committed a Regional
Technical Assistance (Reta) funding aid of $460,000 to
help the Philippines fight various communicable and
emerging diseases including dengue, which the Department
of Health said has more cases in the first two weeks of
January than the whole of 2007, which recorded 45,000
cases and 416 deaths—making it an increasing health
concern in the Philippines.
ADB
Southeast Asia Department deputy director general Thomas
Crouch said the bank’s assistance is broken down into
$350,000 for emergency regional support to address the
outbreak of SARS, avian influenza, and emerging
infectious diseases and $100,000 for the strengthening
of epidemiological surveillance and response to
communicable diseases.
Crouch
said the first Reta aims to establish capacity at
national and local government level while the second
Reta is aimed at helping the Health department
antidengue program.
“In the
absence of a vaccine, vector control remains the only
available strategy against dengue to date and requires a
consolidated approach from various stakeholders,
partners and the active involvement of communities,”
said Crouch.
He also
said that since the rapid spread of dengue is related to
constantly evolving socioecological systems, building
new partnerships between all stakeholders—including
government agencies like the Department of Education,
the Department of Interior and Local Government and the
Department of Public Works and Highways, as well as
communities—is a necessity.
In this
connection, the health department said the increase in
dengue-bearing mosquitoes is related to the rise in
urban population in mostly poor areas, and had advised
these residents to puncture tires used to anchor roofs,
drain pools of stagnant water that may have formed all
over their area, and other such practices to deny the
dengue-bearing mosquitoes their breeding places.
Under
the Retas that ADB has extended, the Bank will finance
training on dengue prevention and control for municipal
health officers and public-works officers and teachers,
and the social mobilization of communities.
There
will also be an awareness campaign for elementary and
secondary schools to empower children to take the lead
in mobilizing their families and communities for a
cleaner and mosquito-free environment.
Also
included are community mobilization clean up activities
to destroy mosquito breeding sites. These activities
will support the DOH’s 4 o’clock habit where
neighborhoods must clean their surroundings regularly.
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