The Palacio de Maynila swabbing center started its operations on Thursday, May 7, testing 250 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) undergoing mandatory quarantine.
“Our immediate goal in the next few weeks is to swab 25,000 seafarers and land-based OFWs, as well as overseas Filipinos,” said National Action Plan Against COVID-19 Deputy Chief Implementer Sec. Vince Dizon.
Dizon is also President and CEO of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) and Presidential Adviser for Flagship Programs and Projects.
The putting up of swabbing centers is part of the Test, Trace and Treat (T3) strategy to strengthen the country's capacity in COVID-19 testing.
The Palacio de Maynila has 65 testing booths, and is manned by medical staff from the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP).
The other mega swabbing centers are the Enderun Tent in Taguig City, Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City, and the Philippine Sports Stadium in Philippine Arena in Bulacan.
For all four swabbing centers, the government estimates to conduct a total of 5,000 tests per day.