INTRODUCTION

The Philippines is a Southeast Asian archipelagic country comprising 7,641 islands. With a population of almost 110 million, a growing middle class and increasing urbanization, it is one of the most dynamic economies in the world (World Bank 2022). The country's gross domestic product (GDP) grew steadily from 2012 to 2019 at an average of 6.5 per cent per year until the Covid-19 pandemic caused a contraction in the economy, resulting in negative GDP growth: −9.6 per cent in 2020 (World Bank 2021a). After the first Covid-19 case was confirmed on 30 January 2020 in the Philippines (a 38-year-old Chinese national), Covid-19 cases shot up to 450,000 confirmed infections and 8,800 deaths in 2020 and 2,800,000 confirmed infections and 49,000 deaths in 2021. At the time of writing this article, March 2023, the Philippines had registered more than 4 million cases and more than 66,000 deaths (WHO 2023).

Controlling the spread of Covid-19 involves effectively managing health risks, yet it presents a policy challenge as some disease control methods—anchored around minimizing human contact and limiting the transmission of the disease—also create the conditions for a potentially severe economic downturn. This dilemma prompted policymakers to consider nuanced crisis relief and recovery plans to flatten the epidemiological curve without flattening the economy. Once Covid-19 was controlled, and a cost-efficient containment system was in place, hard lockdowns and mobility restrictions could be relaxed, allowing the economy to recover. Hence, countries that seemed to fare better in controlling the pandemic also minimized the economic damage they suffered due to comparatively shorter lockdown periods (McKinsey & Company 2020).

While the timing, length and severity of lockdowns are important factors in disease control, their success and effectiveness ultimately rests on resources, institutional capacity, the healthcare system and social protection. The Philippines was among the countries that implemented a relatively early lockdown, which was targeted and regional and began on 15 March 2020.1 This was designed to help reduce the number of cases and deaths. However, the country failed to strengthen its weak healthcare system during its multiple lockdowns to prepare for reopening. The Philippines did not possess the necessary requirements of adequate Covid-19 testing, efficient contact tracing, sufficient facilities for treatment and rapid vaccinations. Moreover, the country also struggled to ensure the timely and adequate distribution of financial aid to affected families, exacerbating the economic and social impact of the pandemic. Without financial aid, some Filipinos were forced to work despite the high risk of infection. However, without social protection for the population, there was continuous pressure to reopen to allow businesses to operate. The country could not go into long lockdowns because it did not have sufficient resources to support households. Consequently, Covid-19 cases continued to rise, overwhelming hospitals and forcing yet another lockdown.