Granular Lockdown Guidelines: What Do Granular Lockdowns Mean?

Granular lockdowns have four levels.
by Ina Louise Manto | September 07, 2021

Despite recording new all-time highs on confirmed COVID-19 cases with more than 20,000 daily cases in the past few days, the IATF-EID has approved the shift from MECQ to GCQ in Metro Manila from September 8 to 30, 2021.

A different kind of GCQ

After being placed on ECQ, the strictest lockdown category, from August 6-20 and shifting to MECQ until September 7, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque announced the shift to General Community Quarantine beginning September 8.

This GCQ will be different from the usual, as a new and more localized lockdown will be implemented in various areas in the Metro – Granular Lockdowns. According to the Spokesperson, this type of lockdown could be limited to as little as streets or barangays rather than cities or provinces.

Granular lockdown pilot testing

The new localized lockdown will be pilot-tested beginning September 8 in Metro Manila, the epicenter of the pandemic. According to Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año, the granular lockdown will have four levels and will be assessed every two weeks.

Under granular lockdowns, streets, barangays, or subdivisions may be placed under the strictest lockdown measure instead of a bigger scale, like an entire city or province. This system will allow establishments and industries to remain open amid the changes brought by the pandemic. This new system will have four Alert Levels:

• Level 1 – least restriction
• Level 2 – 50% of residents are allowed to go out
• Level 3 – 30% of residents are allowed to go out
• Level 4 – no resident is allowed to go out except for health workers

The final granular lockdown guidelines are yet to be released. According to the Department of Health, all LGUs in Metro Manila are placed under Alert Level 4, except Manila City, which is under Alert Level 3.

As of writing, the Philippines have recorded 2,103,331 COVID-19 cases with 159,633 active cases and 34,337 deaths.