The Department of Finance (DOF) said the Delta variant could force the government to “take a step back” in reopening the economy to protect gains achieved so far in its coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) response.
Carlos Dominguez, DOF secretary, made the statement after business groups expressed support for a hard lockdown in August amid the threat brought by the Delta variant.
“Sometime last year, I made the observations that this contagion would most likely not disappear quickly and that sometimes we may have to take a step backwards after taking two forward, to protect our gains achieved in combating the virus,” Dominguez told reporters yesterday.
“I believe the new variant has forced us to do exactly that,” he added.
Dominguez said while the future cannot be predicted with accuracy, “we can prepare ourselves for any eventuality by protecting our financial capacity to react appropriately to developments.”
Karl Kendrick Chua, socioeconomic planning secretary, also told reporters that both economic and health sides will need to see the full analysis of the situation before a recommendation is made on the type of quarantine measures moving forward.
“The risks from the Delta variant are higher. Still, our response is to manage the risks by ensuring much faster vaccination rate, and limiting more stringent lockdown in local areas or sectors of highest risk, while allowing the rest of the people, especially those already vaccinated, to earn a living. Our experience last March-April, where we were able to do a better balance, can guide our response,” Chua said.
Asked if the government’s growth target of six to seven percent is still doable should there be a two-week lockdown, Chua said: “I’d rather wait ‘til August 10 (for the) Q2 (gross domestic product results) release before we revisit the targets in light of recent developments.”
In a statement released yesterday, Dominguez underscored the need for regular systemic risk assessments to enable the government to quickly spot the underlying vulnerabilities of, and anticipate potential threats to, the country’s financial system from the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said conducting these systemic risk assessments will protect both the economy and the Filipino people from “avoidable shocks” that could set back the country’s progress towards a strong post-pandemic recovery.
“Having a better understanding and view of brewing risks is necessary for calibrated actions and policy interventions. This is the way modern governments should operate. We should anticipate threats rather than merely react to problems after they have broken out,” Dominguez said at Wednesday’s virtual launching of the Financial Stability Coordination Council’s 2021 First Semester Report.
Dominguez assured the public that it will continue to exercise judicious financial management to maintain the country’s fiscal stamina and ensure the resilience of the economy.
“Rest assured, we are doing our utmost to safeguard the health of our financial system to enable it to continue serving the needs of the public and support our ongoing recovery efforts. We will always be vigilant against the risks posed by the pandemic while taking advantage of opportunities that will help restore our country’s economic growth trajectory,” he said.
