The vaccinated population has helped in increasing the dine-in traffic in restaurants amid the pandemic, an official from a public-private task force said on Thursday.
Task Force T3 (Test, Trace and Treat) Communications Lead Margot Torres shared at a Laging Handa briefing that vaccinated Filipinos are availing of the discounts offered to them by over 200 restaurants under the Smart Bakuna Benefits initiatives.
“Nakita namin, based on the survey ng aming participating brands, ’yung 90 percent nakita nilang tumaas ’yung dine-in traffic nila [We saw, based on our survey of participating brands, that 90 percent of them registered higher dine-in traffic],” said Torres, who is also McDonald’s Philippines managing director.
The benefits program was launched by the Task Force T3, Smart Communications and Restaurant Owners of the Philippines (RestoPH). It aims to offer incentives so the public will be encouraged to get their Covid-19 jabs.
“Di lang nakatulong sa negosyo, we were able also to thank ’yung mga bakunado na ginawa nila ’yung kanilang civic duty [It did not only help the businesses, but we were able to show our gratitude to the vaccinated population for doing their civic duty],” she added.
Torres said the task force is looking into the best practices implemented by the other countries to lessen vaccine hesitancy, noting that she is looking forward to the Philippines achieving herd immunity.
She stressed the need to continuously educating the public about the importance of getting vaccinated to curb the spread of Covid-19.
Previously, RestoPH President Eric Teng asked the government for another 20 percent indoor dine-in allowance for the vaccinated population. The goal of said initiative, he said, is to allow vaccinated senior citizens to go to restaurants.
Teng said that the food and beverage industry has been finding it challenging to operate for over a year now because of the restricted business capacity. He shared that the sector’s transactions declined by 60 percent while the number of outlets slid by 6 percent last year because of the lockdown protocols imposed to curb the spread of Covid-19.
Based on the latest advisory, indoor dine-in services in Metro Manila, Bulacan and Rizal are allowed at 40-percent capacity while the limit in Laguna and Cavite is at 20 percent. For outdoor dine-in services, 50-percent capacity is allowed in the entire National Capital Region Plus bubble.