9 December 2020 via Facebook live

Good afternoon, members of the Malacanang Press Corps.

To be able to balance the health and safety of our citizens with the need to reopen the economy, the IATF has endorsed the establishment of a Safety Seal certification program.

We are calling this program “Safe Dito.” This program aims to increase the confidence of the general public in going out and patronizing establishments that have stringent health and safety as well as contact tracing protocols in place required by the IATF. One major requirement for the certification is the adoption of StaySafe PH system as their contact tracing tool.

The local government units (LGUs) will be responsible for issuing the Safety Seal Certification to the establishments in their jurisdictions that comply with the safety protocols.

This is not, however, a one-time exercise. Earning the seal and keeping the seal are two different things altogether. The LGUs will be asked to perform regular audits on establishments to ensure that they continuously comply with the required safety protocols. Upon audit, if the establishment is found to have failed in complying with the safety protocols, their Safety Seal will be revoked and will only be reissued once the establishment is able to comply.

Certified establishments will be provided a Safety Seal Certification sticker, which they will be required to display at all entry points of the establishment.

• Certified establishments are also required to display their StaySafe Business QR code at all entry points.
• Customers or patrons of the store are required to scan the QR code of the establishment for screening questions and the latest safety seal certification check.
• Employees of the certified establishments are also required to scan the StaySafe QR code. They can also download and use the StaySafe app.

The IATF strongly encourages the LGUs to mandate establishments to apply for a Safety Seal Certification to provide their constituents with “certified safe” places to visit and patronize. The LGUs will build and update the StaySafe database each time an establishment receives a safety seal that can easily be accessed by the general public.

The IATF has directed the Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Health, Department of Interior and Local Government, Department of Tourism, and the Department of Transportation to issue the necessary joint memorandum circular to be deployed to the LGUs which will outline the implementing guidelines and requirements in securing a Safety Seal certificate.

As we await the issuance of the joint memorandum circular, the IATF would like to reiterate to the LGUs and establishments to already adopt the StaySafe PH system as their contact tracing platform or integrate into their current systems in order for them to get a headstart on the requirements for the Safety Seal certification. ♦

Date of Release: 09 December 2020