Senator Christopher “Bong” Go on Sunday lauded the ratification of the bicameral conference committee report on the proposed Virology Institute of the Philippines Act, a measure he principally authored and co-sponsored.

Both chambers of Congress ratified the bicam report on Senate Bill No. 2893 on 9 June, marking a major step forward in institutionalizing the country’s capacity to prevent and respond to future pandemics.

Go said the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic underscored the urgency of establishing a national research center focused on viruses and vaccine development.

“The pandemic taught us many lessons,” he said. “Had we had our own facility for vaccine and antiviral research and development, we could have responded more swiftly to the health crisis caused by COVID-19.”

The proposed Virology and Vaccine Institute of the Philippines (VIP) will serve as a key national hub for virology research, focusing on human, animal, and plant viruses. Once enacted, it will be an attached agency under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

Go said the creation of the institute would bolster the country’s scientific capability to detect, study, and combat viral threats and infectious diseases. He also emphasized the broader goal of achieving biomedical self-reliance.

“This is a major step toward our goal of being self-reliant when it comes to vaccines and treatments,” Go added. “We must invest in long-term solutions through institutions like the Virology Institute.”

The VIP will conduct pre-clinical studies, genome sequencing, diagnostic test development, and vaccine prototyping. It will also maintain high-containment biosafety laboratories and biobanks for specimen storage and analysis.

A governing board composed of representatives from DOST, the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), and the private sector will oversee the institute’s strategic direction. Its day-to-day operations will be led by a Director General with support from Deputy Directors for research, institutional development, and administration.

The senator also highlighted a complementary measure he authored, Senate Bill No. 195, which seeks to establish the Philippine Center for Disease Control (CDC). The proposed CDC will serve as the country’s lead agency for disease prevention, surveillance, and control, addressing both infectious and non-communicable diseases.

Patterned after global best practices, the CDC and VIP are designed to work in tandem to enhance the country’s overall pandemic preparedness and public health infrastructure.

“The passage of this bill is not just about responding to current threats,” Go said. “It is about preparing for the future. We must develop our own capacity to face the pandemics yet to come.”