A long road back to normal

Philippines

Our teams in the Philippines work on tackling the alarming tuberculosis (TB) incidence rate in the country, which is the highest in Asia.

In 2021, we launched a new TB project in the densely populated and impoverished Tondo area of the capital, Manila.

In the southern city of Marawi, we continued to provide general and mental healthcare to people displaced and affected by the armed conflict that erupted between the army and a group related to the Islamic State group in 2017.  

In 2020 and 2021, our teams supported in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and, in 2022, to the typhoon Rai response in Northern Mindanao.

Our activities in 2021 in the Philippines

Data and information from the International Activity Report 2021.

MSF in the Philippines in 2021 In 2021, Médecins Sans Frontières launched a new project in the Philippines to tackle the alarming tuberculosis (TB) incidence rate, which, at 554 cases for every 100,000 people*, is the highest in Asia.
Map_Philippines_2021.png

We decided to open the project in the capital region, Metro Manila, since it has the highest prevalence, and focused activities on the slum communities of Tondo. 

MSF had already worked in Tondo, so we were familiar with its particular health challenges: it is a densely populated, impoverished area, served by only a few health centres with limited staff. Tondo also had a very low case detection rate, and the community had limited access to diagnosis. Furthermore, since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, community outreach had been restricted, and many health centre staff had been reallocated to quarantine facilities and vaccination. 

In 2021, we began coordinating with the City of Manila Health Department, and started our first active case-finding activities in June. In addition, we provided TB preventive treatment and developed materials for patient education and counselling. 

In the southern part of the Philippines, we continued our work in Marawi, in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. We provided people displaced and affected by conflict with general and mental healthcare, as well as treatment for non-communicable diseases, in several facilities. 

The year closed with an exploration in Northern Mindanao, which was ravaged by Typhoon Rai (local name Odette). Our teams visited the hardest-hit areas of Surigao del Norte province, including the islands of Siargao and Dinagat, to assess the needs and prepare a response.

*World Health Organization Tuberculosis Fact Sheet, October 2021 

 

in 2021
 
Typhoon Rai (Odette) Assessment
Philippines

MSF launches response after Typhoon Rai leaves hundreds of casualties in its wake

Project Update 18 Jan 2022
 
COVID-19 response in Marawi
Philippines

Displaced communities in Marawi living with COVID-19 and ongoing uncertainty

Project Update 17 Jul 2020
 
Tondo project in Philippines
Photo Story

A year in pictures 2017

18 Dec 2017
Photo Story
 
Tondo project - HPV vaccination
Photo Story

Supporting young girls in the slums of Manila

21 Nov 2017
Photo Story
 
MSF Response in Iligan City
Philippines

Helping people cope amid conflict in Mindanao

Voices from the Field 29 Sep 2017
 
Construction of the hospital in Guiuan
Philippines

One year after typhoon Haiyan

Report 18 Dec 2014