Philippines: Second Health System Enhancement to Address and Limit COVID-19 Under the Asia Pacific Vaccine Access Facility Additional Financing Project (HEAL2-AF)

OBJECTIVE

To support the Government of the Philippines for procurement of eligible COVID-19 vaccines.

DESCRIPTION

This project was proposed to be supported under AIIB’s COVID-19 Crisis Recovery Facility and co-financed with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for the procurement of vaccines eligible under ADB’s Asia Pacific Vaccine Access Facility (APVAX) program. The project aimed to provide critically needed vaccines to assist the Government of the Philippines in mitigating adverse health, social, and economic impacts caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL INFORMATION

The loan was co-financed with and led by ADB. The project’s environmental and social (ES) risks and impacts were assessed in accordance with ADB’s Safeguard Policy Statement (SPS). To ensure a harmonized approach to addressing the ES risks and impacts of the project, and as permitted under AIIB’s Environmental and Social Policy (ESP), ADB’s SPS applied to the project in lieu of AIIB’s ESP. AIIB reviewed ADB’s SPS and was satisfied that: (a) it was consistent with AIIB’s Articles of Agreement and materially consistent with the provisions of AIIB’s ESP, including the Environmental and Social Exclusion List and the relevant Environmental and Social Standards; and (b) the monitoring procedures that were in place were appropriate for the project.

Under its SPS, ADB categorized the project as Category C for Environment, Involuntary Resettlement, and Indigenous Peoples on the basis that no adverse ES impacts were expected. The project was categorized as “effective gender mainstreaming”, as it expanded social assistance for the poor and vulnerable with clear linkages to women’s welfare.