TOKYO – The Japanese government began imposing stricter requirements on its citizens and foreign residents returning to Japan from the Philippines on Monday due to concerns over reported cases of new and more contagious COVID-19 variants in the Southeast Asian nation.

MANILA – The Philippines has now secured 20 million doses of the novel coronavirus vaccine by U.S. biotech firm Moderna, Inc., the pharmaceutical company announced on Monday.

TOKYO – Japan completely ended Sunday its second novel coronavirus state of emergency after Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga’s government lifted the measure in Tokyo, Chiba, Kanagawa and Saitama.

MANILA – There will be no lockdown, instead, additional measures would be put in place to address the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the National Capital Region and its neighboring provinces. This was the announcement made by Presidential Spokesperson Secretary Harry Roque Jr. on March 21.