The Bureau of Customs vowed on Wednesday, February 10, for a swift release of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine shipment once it arrives in the country.
“There will be no delay in the clearance and release of the much-anticipated COVID-19 vaccines,” Customs Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero said, stressing that they are now geared up for the arrival of the antigen.
“Ports have already activated one-stop shops to handle vaccine shipments. We will use pre-arrival clearance procedures for COVID vaccine shipments so that they can be expeditiously released upon arrival at the airport,” the commissioner added.
Guerrero disclosed that during the simulation, “Customs clearance was very fast” as the shipment was already processed prior to its arrival, giving them confidence that the release of the vaccines from the port of entry will be on immediate.
The commissioner also assured the public that they “will protect the country against unregistered and illegal goods.”
The full-scale simulation exercise of cold chain logistics and management of the vaccines was spearheaded by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) and the National Task Force Against COVID-19.
It began with the arrival of goods at the airport; then pre-customs clearance at the Port of NAIA one-stop-shop; continuing with the transportation of the vaccines; then the unloading, receiving, and inspection of vaccines in the cold chain storage facility at the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM).
The activity aims to determine the authorities' readiness as well as to ensure the effective and efficient flow of distribution of the COVID-19 vaccines from the airport to the health facilities.