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Jurisdiction | Philippines |
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The Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID, or simply the IATF) is a task force organized by the executive of the Philippine government to respond to affairs concerning emerging infectious diseases in the Philippines.
Formation
The IATF-EID that was created through Executive Order No. 168 in 2014 which was issued by then-President Benigno Aquino III.[1] It was organized as government's instrument to assess, monitor, contain, control and prevent the spread of any potential epidemic in the Philippines.[2]
COVID-19 pandemic
The IATF-EID was convened in January 2020 to address the growing viral outbreak in Wuhan, China.[3] They made a resolution to manage the spreading of the new virus,[3] which was known at the time as 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) and eventually renamed to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).[4] On March 9, 2020, President Duterte called the IATF-EID amidst the rising cases of COVID-19 in the Philippines.[5]
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20210310125449im_/https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/Pres_Duterte_IATF-IED_May_19_meeting.jpg/220px-Pres_Duterte_IATF-IED_May_19_meeting.jpg)
On March 25, 2020, the IATF-EID revealed a National Action Plan (NAP) to slow down the spreading of COVID-19.[6] The NAP was created to effectively and efficiently implement and decentralize the system of managing the COVID-19 situation.[7] In addition, the IATF-EID created the COVID-19 National Task Force headed by Department of National Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, which handles the operational command.[8] At the same time, the IATF-EID became the "policy-making body of operations" while the National Incident Command administers the daily concerns and operations.[9]
The Joint Task Force COVID-19 Shield headed by Police Lt. Gen. Cesar Hawthorne Binag is a task force intended to enforce quarantine protocols in border checkpoints and streets, and maintain peace, order, and security throughout the country to help control the spread of COVID-19. The task force is composed of the Philippine National Police (PNP), the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), and Barangay Tanods.
In April 2020, the IATF-EID appointed Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chair Danilo Lim and Bangsamoro Chief Minister Murad Ebrahim to lead the regional inter-agency task groups in Metro Manila and Bangsamoro, respectively. The Office of Civil Defense was tasked to lead the regional task forces in other regions.[10]
Composition
The IATF-EID is composed of the following executive departments:[3]
- Chair: Department of Health
- Co-Chair:
- Members
- Department of Agriculture
- Department of Budget and Management
- Department of Education
- Department of Finance
- Department of Foreign Affairs
- Department of Information and Communications Technology
- Department of the Interior and Local Government
- Department of Justice
- Department of Labor and Employment
- Department of National Defense
- Department of Public Works and Highways
- Department of Science and Technology
- Department of Social Welfare and Development
- Department of the Interior and Local Government
- Department of Tourism
- Department of Trade and Industry
- Department of Transportation
- Presidential Communications Operations Office
- Office of the Executive Secretary
- Office of the Presidential Spokesperson
- Commission on Higher Education
- Technical Education and Skills Development Authority
- National Economic and Development Authority
- Office of the Chief Presidential Legal Counsel
The Joint Task Force COVID-19 Shield is composed of the following who will ensure that IATF Guidelines/Protocols are strictly enforced.
- Lead Agency: Philippine National Police
- Members:
- Armed Forces of the Philippines
- Bureau of Fire Protection
- Philippine Coast Guard
- All Barangay Tanods
- Bantay Dagat
- All Local Government Units
References
- ^ "Executive Order No. 168". The LawPhil Project. May 26, 2014. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
- ^ "Task force on emerging infectious diseases formed". The Philippine Star. June 3, 2014. Retrieved April 11, 2020.
- ^ a b c "INTER-AGENCY TASK FORCE FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES – RESOLUTION NO. 01 – RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF THE NOVEL CORONAVIRUS SITUATION" (PDF). Department of Health. January 28, 2020. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
- ^ Xia, Shuai; Liu, Meiqin; Wang, Chao; Xu, Wei; Lan, Qiaoshuai; Feng, Siliang; Qi, Feifei; Bao, Linlin; Du, Lanying; Liu, Shuwen; Qin, Chuan (March 30, 2020). "Inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 (previously 2019-nCoV) infection by a highly potent pan-coronavirus fusion inhibitor targeting its spike protein that harbors a high capacity to mediate membrane fusion". Cell Research. 30 (4): 343–355. doi:10.1038/s41422-020-0305-x. ISSN 1748-7838. PMC 7118126. PMID 32231345.
- ^ Lopez, Virgil (March 9, 2020). "Duterte convenes inter-agency body as COVID-19 cases rise to 20". GMA News. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
- ^ Lopez, Virgil (March 25, 2020). "Palace bares national action plan vs. COVID-19". GMA News. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
- ^ Romero, Alexis (March 26, 2020). "DND, DILG take over implementation of quarantine". The Philippine Star. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
- ^ Sadongdong, Martin (March 25, 2020). "Lorenzana heads COVID-19 national task force". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
- ^ "Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) Virtual Presser with Cabinet Secretary Karlo Alexei Nograles, Department of Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año and [via Skype] Department of Health Spokesperson Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire". Presidential Communications Group. March 25, 2020. Archived from the original on April 18, 2020. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
- ^ Valente, Catherine (April 14, 2020). "IATF names heads of Covid-19 regional task groups". The Manila Times. Retrieved April 22, 2020.