Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert F. del Rosario and United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, ad interim Terence D. Jones signed on February 04 the Standard Administrative Arrangement between the Republic of the Philippines and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for the management of the Philippines’ contribution to the Ebola Response Multi-Partner Trust Fund (MPTF).
In his statement, Secretary Del Rosario underscored the Philippines’ commitment to assist in the ongoing Ebola outbreak response efforts, as well as in initiatives for the prevention of future outbreaks. He noted that the Php 90-million contribution is a step in this direction. “This is but one way for us to give back to the international community for the outpouring of support in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan” and also “part of our commitment to protect and promote the welfare of Filipinos overseas.”
For his part, UNRC, a.i. Jones lauded the Philippines for its continuing commitment to jointly addressing not only the challenges posed by Ebola, but also challenges posed by other pressing cross-border issues, such as climate change, disaster risk reduction and management and the post-2015 sustainable development goals.
The simple ceremony was witnessed by World Health Organization Representative Julie Lyn Hall, Philippine Health Undersecretary for Administration and Finance Dr. Nemesio T. Gako, and the 14-member Ebola Rapid Response Team, led by Ambassador Ricardo M. Endaya, that recently returned from West Africa to assist Filipinos in the Ebola-affected areas.
The Ebola Response MPTF was launched by the UN Secretary General as a common financing mechanism to ensure the coherent response of the UN System and rapid and transparent mobilization of funding from all stakeholders. It is administered by the UNDP MPTF Office in New York.