The Canadian government has turned over 120,000 N95 respirator masks valued at $833,000 Canadian dollars (approximately P30.6 million) to the Department of Health (DoH) as part of its commitment to support Filipino frontline healthcare workers’ efforts in combating the COVID-19 pandemic.
Canada’s Ambassador to Manila Peter MacArthur said his government is collaborating closely with the Philippines along with other governments in the region in the fight against COVID-19.
“This includes regional cooperation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its nember-states because only together can we defeat the virus,” MacArthur added.
According to the Canadian Embassy, the masks were provided through a partnership between Canada, the ASEAN Secretariat, and ASEAN member-states, aiming to mitigate biological threats.
This partnership has been working on strengthening biological security, biological safety, and disease surveillance capabilities in the region since 2013 and has produced significant results and has enhanced the capacity of ASEAN partners to prevent, detect, and respond to all manner of biological threats – be they natural, accidental, or deliberate in origin.
“Building on this longstanding partnership, Canada has provided additional support to ASEAN partners to combat the COVID pandemic. This includes a $4.5-million Canadian dollars (approximately P165 million) in-kind contribution of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) items to six ASEAN member-states, including the 120,000 masks for the Philippines,” MacArthur said.
The N95 respirator masks donation is part of the $3-million Canadian dollars (approximately P110.3 million) in bilateral assistance Canada has pledged to assist the Philippines in the fight against COVID-19.