Over 500 Filipinos in Shanghai receive aid amid city’s lockdown
MANILA, Philippines (Updated 2:58 p.m.) — Another batch of Filipinos based in Shanghai received food packs from the Department of Foreign Affairs’ welfare assistance program amid the ongoing lockdown in China’s financial district.
The second round of assistance was delivered to 288 more Filipinos from May 22 to 24, bringing the total number of assisted Filipinos to 535. The first batch consisting of 247 Filipinos received their food packs in early May.
“The food packs are part of a larger assistance effort for Filipinos in Shanghai,” the Philippine Consulate General (PCG) in Shanghai said in a statement.
“A parallel assistance track is being undertaken for members of the Overseas Workers Welfare Agency, in coordination with the said agency’s official at the OWWA Headquarters in Manila and the OWWA Office in Hong Kong, which covers Shanghai,” it added.
Even if Shanghai started to ease restrictions by allowing some factories and public transportation to resume operations, the majority of its 25-million residents are only allowed to leave their homes for over a few hours daily at most.
Shanghai is trying to implement a "zero-Covid policy," still maintaining lockdown restrictions even with its latest daily tally of less than 150 COVID cases. As of May 29, Shanghai reported 93 new local asymptomatic cases, 29 local symptomatic cases, 18 previously tagged as asymptomatic, and three imported cases, according to the Chinese National Health Commission.
China’s Premier Li Keqiang recently called on authorities to work on making sure there will be “reasonable” growth for the country’s economy in the second quarter even while it is trying to manage the virus.
Meanwhile, Manila’s post in Shanghai provided Filipinos with multiple packages ranging from essential food items to Philippine-branded products for “a taste of home,” which included canned fish, soup mixed, and other snacks.
The consulate said it worked with the Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Shanghai, which then collaborated with multiple brands such as the Shanghai Jinglv DianJing Corp. Ltd., Lianyugang Dawn Trading Co. Ltd., Century Pacific China, and Oishi-maker Liwayway China Co. Ltd.
“The PCG also solicited the inputs of key Filipino Community organizations during planning to survey and solve anticipated hurdles,” the post said.
To deliver the items, the consulate worked with Filipino volunteers and a third-party delivery provider to ensure that each package would reach every Filipino beneficiary. — Kaycee Valmonte with Agence France-Presse
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