Zamboanga del Sur creates vaccine task force

Local officials are ready to get inoculated first to assure the public that Covid-19 vaccines are safe

In line with the country’s preparation for the rollout of the Covid-19 vaccination program, Zamboanga del Sur created a Provincial Vaccine Task Force that will spearhead the management of the program.

Governor Victor Yu, head of the task force, said the program will include communication and information campaigns.

“There will be five to six teams that will be tasked to monitor. Others will be given other assignments, including the information campaign and supervision in cities and municipalities,” he said during the Network Briefing News with Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Martin Andanar last week.

He also bared that local heads are ready to get inoculated first to assure the public that the vaccines are safe.

“To encourage the public to get vaccinated, us leaders will be the first to get the shots,” he said.

Currently, the province is waiting for the guidelines from the Department of Health on which vaccines will be distributed for use.

The prevailing pandemic also stressed the need to focus programs on the agriculture sector and ensure food security, Yu said.

“I think the key areas which we will focus on are still agriculture and food security, including the infrastructures and mechanization,” he said.

He also cited the assistance provided by the Department of Agriculture in the campaign for food security and looking after the welfare of workers in the agriculture and fishery sector.

Meanwhile, the first Cacao Festival in Zamboanga del Sur was held recently as the province aims to become the cacao capital of Mindanao.

Yu said they are targeting to plant 10,000 cacao seedlings by 2025, a move that is expected to generate around P1 billion for the province.