UPDATE 1-Philippines reports 52 more cases of South African COVID-19 variant

* South African variant found in capital's residents
* Philippines posts highest daily case number in four months
* President Duterte vouched for safety of vaccines

(Adds details on new COVID-19 cases)
MANILA, March 5 (Reuters) - The Philippines has recorded 52
more cases of a highly contagious coronavirus variant first
identified in South Africa, the health ministry said on Friday,
presenting new challenges for a country battling one of Asia's
worst outbreaks.
Out of the new cases of the variant, known as B.1.351, the
health ministry said 41 were detected in Manila, while the
origin of the others was still being verified. The Philippines
first reported six cases of the variant on Tuesday. The Southeast Asian country started its inoculation drive on
Monday, but health experts worry the discovery of new variants
could complicate its effort. Health authorities also reported on Friday 31 more
infections of a variant first identified in Britain, raising the
total to 118.
In addition to the two variants, the health ministry said it
had detected 42 more cases of "mutations of potential clinical
significance" in samples collected from Filipinos returning from
overseas and residents in Manila and the central Philippines.
The Philippines' health ministry on Friday reported 3,045
new COVID-19 cases, the highest daily increase in more than four
months.
President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday vouched for the safety
of COVID-19 shots as he appealed to the public to get vaccinated
as soon as possible, saying this was key to reopening an economy
that posted its sharpest contraction in 2020.
The Philippines stock of 600,000 vaccines made by China's
Sinovac Biotech got a boost with the arrival on Thursday of more
than 480,000 doses of the AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN) vaccine secured through
the COVAX facility. The Philippines has been slower than some neighbours rolling
out vaccines after supply shortages hobbled government efforts
to secure millions of doses to inoculate 70 million of its 108
million people this year in a bid to achieve herd immunity.