LAST week, we saw the accelerated vaccination rollout among the A4 priority group. This group is composed of economic frontliners from different sectors — retail, tourism, media, and education.
Bannering the A4 was the Bakuna by the Sea, a joint effort by the City Government of Davao, Davao Tourism Association (Data), and other tourism stakeholders. Held at Waterfront Insular Hotel Davao, the vaccination drive was set at a backdrop of the Davao Gulf.
"This vaccination program is the reboot that the industry truly needs, especially that a number of tourism establishments have closed down and thousands have lost their jobs," Tanya Rabat Tan, Department of Tourism-Davao Region director, said.
The Bakuna by the Sea not only vaccinated the tourism sector but also workers in the media industry. This will ensure journalists and their support team will still be able to deliver much-needed information to the public.
Simultaneously held was the VACC2Normal Vaccination Drive of the information technology-business process management (IT-BPM) sector. Over 1,700 individuals from the IT-BPM industry, including freelancers, were administered with the Covid-19 vaccine.
Retail centers and malls in the city have also started to vaccinate their employees. Abreeza Mall targeted to vaccinate over 1,600 mall employees and estate service staff. NCCC malls have also begun to roll out their vaccination campaign for 600 frontline employees. Employees from SM Malls and Gaisano Malls are also getting their vaccines.
Other large private firms, like Sam Miguel Corporation, also started the vaccination of its A4 workers
For the academe, vaccination for the personnel of the members of the Davao Association for Catholic Schools has also started at the Ateneo de Davao University.
The vaccination of A4 workers was also done over the weekend. In a statement, the city government of Davao said it targeted to vaccinate around 20,000 individuals under the group.
The public-private cooperation has led to an accelerated vaccination of the A4 workers. Evidently, the consolidation of those who needed to be vaccinated has allowed more people to get the much-needed vaccine against Covid-19.
This current public partnership, while not perfect, is showing to be effective in helping achieve the city government’s goal of her immunity.
We are thankful to the sector organizations, city government of Davao, and the Department of Health for working together to administer the vaccines to those who want them.
With more individuals who have voluntarily got the vaccine, it will be safer to reopen the economy soon. While vaccines are not foolproof against the Covid-19 vaccine, it provides a layer of protection. Most notably, available vaccines have shown to be preventive against severe symptoms and hospitalization.