By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora | Philippine News Agency
The United States is set to provide more than P11.8 billion ($193 million) to support a $42-billion five-year joint health program with the Philippines in the fight against human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and tuberculosis (TB), the US Embassy in Manila said Friday.
The Philippines and the US signed on July 22 the Health Strategic Objective Agreement, which contains a jointly funded plan to improve and sustain the country’s capacity to detect, treat, and prevent HIV and TB.
Of the $42 billion, the Embassy said the Philippines will co-invest more than P30 billion ($492 million) in the country’s health systems over the next five years.
“The United States Government, working with the US Congress, intends to provide more than P11.8 billion over the five-year life of the Agreement to advance shared global health goals, fight the spread of infectious diseases before they spread internationally, and build greater autonomy and self-reliance in its health systems,” it said.
The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the 59th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and Related Meetings, where State Secretary Marco Rubio was among the attendees.
“The timing of US Ambassador Lee Lipton’s signature on the Agreement, alongside Secretary Rubio’s visit to the Philippines, is a milestone in the Trump Administration’s America First Global Health Strategy,” the embassy said.
“The Agreement will save American and Filipino lives, increase the resiliency of the Philippine health system through coordinated co-funding, and promote innovations to slow the spread of infectious diseases, like TB and HIV, that threaten both the United States and the Philippines,” it added.
The embassy said the program will focus on enhancing the surveillance, detection and response to HIV and TB outbreaks.
For five years, the two countries will support the integration of health service delivery across disease programs and strengthen domestic capacity to finance and manage the health sector.
