The ongoing vaccination program is seen as a big step towards the country’s economic recovery. Niño Jesus Orbeta/Philippine Daily Inquirer
MANILA — Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship and Go Negosyo founder Joey Concepcion sees the arrival of anti-COVID-19 vaccines Sinovac from China and of AstraZeneca from the COVAX facility as the start of the country’s economic recovery.
“As we vaccinate, we must put the entire country into MGCQ, boost domestic tourism to recover faster, and allow the economy to open more. This is the last and only chance for our micro and small entrepreneurs to come back strong and utilize the fourth quarter as the start of their bounce back,” Concepcion said Thursday.
“We are expecting that by May, we will be receiving the first batch of around 2.6 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccines through the ‘A Dose of Hope’ program. The third quarter will be where the remaining 14 million doses will be delivered. This includes the second batch of orders from the private sector and the LGUs,” Concepcion added.
“Also, we are expecting other brands such as Moderna and Novavax to arrive in the third quarter. These are all on top of the national government’s vaccine orders which initially started coming this week from the Sinovac vaccines from China to the AstraZeneca vaccines that will come from the COVAX facility, among others,” he explained.
Concepcion projects that should the vaccine inoculation goes well, with the second and third quarter as the critical point to achieve this, the country’s economic rebound by the fourth quarter is very possible.
“With vaccines to start coming in by May onwards, especially in the third quarter, that will bring in a lot of confidence. Remember, 2022 is an election year; that is the biggest stimulus when people start to spend during election. The last quarter of 2021 which is Christmas, I believe is going to be the chance for many of our MSMEs to get back on their feet. That should be the time that the economy must really be bouncing back,” Concepcion enthused.
“That’s why we are putting a lot of pressure on the arrival of the vaccines and the implementation has to be excellent. Upon the arrival of the vaccines, people must be vaccinated so that by the fourth quarter, consumer confidence would increase. Then we’ll have spending because of the Christmas season and the elections which would complement the numerous stimulus packages such as the Bayanihan 2, the CREATE bill, and the proposed Bayanihan 3. In the success of all of these, our economy shall rebound in the fourth quarter, then we could look forward to a better 2022,” Concepcion added.
“Talking to one of the biggest financing companies in the country, it seems that many micro and small enterprises are affected because they told me that loans below P500,000 are not being paid, while bigger amounts are being paid. You can see the effect of our economic problem and how it is affecting the smaller entrepreneurs. Their lifelines in the banks are not as big as the medium and large companies, and I believe that as the vaccines arrive, we should open up the economy more. That’s why our goal is to pursue all avenues from testing to vaccination,” he added.
Meanwhile, Concepcion also suggested that schools should continue to be administered online for children’s safety.