The City Health Office (CHO) Tropical Diseases and Control Division recorded lower dengue cases in 2025 compared to the previous year.
Speaking during the I-Speak Media Forum on Tuesday, Tropical Diseases and Control Division focal person Melodina Babante said their office recorded 3,335 dengue cases in 2025, which is 53.54 percent lower than the 7,157 cases recorded in 2024.
Babante said the drastic decrease was due to the efforts of the 72 Barangay Mosquito-Borne Diseases Task Forces (BMBDTF) in Davao City, which help in surveillance and the search and destruction of mosquito breeding sites to prevent the clustering of cases.
Each BMBDTF consists of barangay officials handling health, environment, and sanitation. Members also include the Sangguniang Kabataan, schools, and private partners.
She said there is a clear difference and decline in the number of dengue cases in barangays with a Task Force compared to those without one.
The creation of the BMBDTF is provided under City Ordinance No. 0401-20, Series of 2020, also known as the “Davao City Mosquito-Borne Diseases Prevention and Control Program.”
“Walay hunong ang pag-encourage ug pag-motivate sa barangays to create Task Force (We do not stop encouraging and motivating barangays to create their own Task Force),” she said.
Babante said they conduct orientations in every barangay as they form their own Task Force.
“Ginapasabot sa ila nga ang mga barangays nga nay Task Force nagababa gyud ang kaso tungod sa ilang Task Force. Macompare gyud ang kalahian sa mga naay Task Force ug wala’y Task Force. Ginapasabot nga dili namo sila biyaan, once na ma-create na ang TF, the more nga naa mi muhatag og technical and logistical assistance para ma-sustain ang Task Force (We explain to them that barangays with a Task Force have a significant decrease. The difference between barangays with a Task Force and those without one can clearly be seen. We also emphasized that they will not be abandoned—once the Task Force is created, we will provide more technical and logistical assistance to help sustain it),” she said.
She added that they also encourage barangays to issue a barangay resolution to ensure that the Task Force will be maintained despite changes in administration and to ensure continued commitment to its mandate.
Apart from the BMBDTF, the CHO also encourages environmental strategies such as regular clean-up drives with search and destroy activities instead of relying on misting or fogging. The office also implements the issuance of citation tickets; however, no tickets have been issued so far due to residents’ compliance following the final warning given by the CHO.
Babante also said they are looking for more effective strategies to further reduce dengue cases in barangays with the highest number of cases. She added that they are partnering with various agencies to ensure compliance with the ordinance and to achieve its goals. CIO
Written by: K.Cañedo
Edited by: A.Nawal
