The Department of Health on Tuesday said it has received P145.5 million from the United Nations Children's Fund and the Government of Canada to integrate COVID-19 vaccination, routine immunization, and proven approaches that make quality primary healthcare accessible for Filipinos.

DOH Secretary Teodoro Herbosa, Ambassador of Canada to the Philippines David Hartman, and UNICEF Representative to the Philippines Oyunsaikhan Dendevnorov reiterated their commitments to this joint endeavor at today’s launch, accompanied by regional, municipal, and local officials.

Herbosa, for his part, expressed its gratefulness to UNICEF and the Government of Canada.

“We're grateful for Canada's generous P145.5 million in support, reflecting a shared commitment to boost public health in the Philippines. Our collaboration with UNICEF integrates COVID-19 vaccination and routine immunization, prioritizing areas with the highest number of unvaccinated individuals," he added.

"Using a gender-responsive approach, we aim to achieve 95 percent coverage, addressing our standing as one of the top five countries with the highest number of zero-dose children," he added.

The Health official said the partnership "signifies a concerted effort to reach those not covered in previous years."

According to the DOH, the partnership prioritizes provinces and cities with the highest number of children who have not had a single shot of childhood vaccines and with the greatest number of unvaccinated individuals for COVID-19 booster vaccines.

The areas include select municipalities in the provinces of Antique, Davao Del Norte, and Sarangani; General Santos City; and the Special Geographic Area in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

The collaboration uses a gender-responsive approach that seeks to address particular needs and barriers including the socio-economic, cultural, and developmental disparities between men and women and that ensures equitable access to vaccines and has proven effective in strengthening a health system so that it can deliver quality, inclusive, and affordable primary health care for all.

To date, only 637,000 Filipino children (or 60 percent coverage) with childhood vaccines have been fully immunized, according to the most recently available official statistics in 2022.

Millions of children with zero or incomplete vaccination are still at risk of outbreaks of deadly diseases like measles and polio since the ideal 95 percent coverage, especially for those not reached in previous years, has not yet been reached.