Health workers trekked through the countryside for hours to conduct Covid-19 contact tracing in a province in the Philippines.

Donning personal protective equipment, Jude Nahil Nagamos Pragoso showed the struggle as he and his colleagues made their way through narrow dirt paths to reach remote areas in Madalag, Aklan on August 7 last year.

He said: 'This is how difficult it is on our part as contact tracers. We have to endure not only the danger posed by the virus, but also the roads that are hard to pass.'

He added: 'We have to endure it for the safety of our countrymen.'

Philippine health authorities have been easing restrictions in a bid to return to normalcy and 'live with the virus.'

Despite having dropped the mask mandate in October, the country's health department urged citizens to comply with 'minimum public health standards' to control the rate of infections.