Serving as chair of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. approved on Wednesday the Department of Health’s (DOH) flagship program to rebuild a resilient and responsive healthcare system.

Dubbed the Philippines: Health System Resilience Project, Phase 1, the program seeks to enhance health emergency prevention, preparedness, and response in vulnerable areas in the country.

According to the President, the PHP27.921-billion project serves as an “application of lessons learned during the pandemic.”

“Maganda ito kasi specific (This is great because it is specific) to the Philippines. It’s not a general … (it is) specific even to the area,” Marcos told Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa who presented the project during the NEDA Board Meeting at the Malacañan Palace.

The program is also geared toward building an enabling environment, project management, monitoring and evaluation, and Contingency Emergency Response Component (CERC).

Likewise, it will prioritize areas in the country with poor access to healthcare.

The health department has already identified 17 provinces for its pilot run. (PNA)