jpwinner gaming Herbosa: PH’s health initiatives should be less reliant on int’l donors
Updated:2025-02-19 06:46 Views:156
MANILA, Philippines — In light of what he deemed as growing “nationalistic and individualistic idealism” spreading worldwide, Department of Health (DOH) chief Teodoro Herbosa said the country’s health initiatives should not be reliant on international donors.
Herbosa made this statement during the first Philippine Country Coordinating Mechanism for the Global Fund (PCCM-GF) held on Wednesday held to address the overall projected funding gap in programs about HIV-AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.
READ: PH to remain priority of US aid under Trump, says USAID exec
Article continues after this advertisement“With growing nationalistic and individualistic idealism spreading across countries, the responsibility to fund health initiatives cannot fall solely on international donors,” Herbosa said.
FEATURED STORIES NEWSINFO Panelo slams NBI on case vs Sara Duterte: ‘Go back to law school’ NEWSINFO Court affirms Pacquiaos’ win in P2.2-B tax case NEWSINFO NBI files criminal cases vs Sara Duterte for threatening MarcosREAD: Trump admin plans to slash all but a fraction of USAID jobs – officials
The administration of American President Donald Trump ordered the dismantling of the US Agency for International Development or USAID, which runs health and emergency programs in around 120 countries including the Philippines.
Article continues after this advertisementREAD: Impact of US aid freeze on PH: It’s small anyway
Article continues after this advertisementWashington is the biggest aid donor in the world, and Manila has received over $5 billion worth of assistance, particularly in healthcare and disaster response, since USAID’s founding in 1961.
Article continues after this advertisementHerbosa said the country “must find ways to source funds that international partners have previously funded.”
The DOH and PCCM-GF readily identified an initial list of alternative sources to the foreign funds, according to him.
Junior doctors — those below consultant level — have staged a series of walk-outs over the last 18 months in protest at below-inflation wage increases since 2010 and as cost-of-living pressures increased.
In New York, the Dow pushed higher to finish at a record but the tech-heavy Nasdaq retreated. In Europe, London closed marginally higher but all the main continental exchanges were slightly lower.
Article continues after this advertisement“Now, it is clear that governments including ours must recognize our own priorities and take more responsibility for financing these priorities in our national health budgets, lessening our dependence on international funding cycles and external decisions and protocols,” Herbosa noted.
“International financing, though crucial, cannot be relied upon indefinitely,” Herbosa continued. “Sole reliance on external aid is not a sustainable financing model.”
Subscribe to our daily newsletter
