Quake-hit Japan to continue financial aid for Philippines

TACLOBAN CITY, Philippines—Despite the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan last year, the Japanese government will continue to provide financial assistance to the Philippines.

Japanese Ambassador Toshinao Urabe made this assurance when he, along with other Japanese Embassy officials, came to Leyte on Monday for a two-day visit of some Japan-funded projects in the province.

The ambassador said they would continue to give out monetary assistance—either grants or soft loans—to the Philippines for projects on roads, school buildings, medical equipment and livelihood, among many others.

“I came here to make people know what we’re doing and what is the philosophy behind ODA (official development assistance). So, we thought it’s very useful to go on site and look at what we’re doing,” Urabe said, referring to their visit to Leyte.

Japan is the number one foreign country providing assistance to the Philippines. The Philippines is the fifth top ODA-recipient country, after Vietnam, Indonesia, India and Thailand.

Japanese embassy data, sourced from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) showed that in 2010 alone, Japan’s ODA to the Philippines amounted to $498.36 million, the biggest at 36.9 percent of the total foreign aids to the country.

In January, Japan has approved several projects for the Philippines, including eight projects for peace and development in Mindanao, the upgrading of pesticide residue laboratories of the Bureau of Plant Industry, the construction of training centers for persons with disability and the provision of wheelchairs for Filipino handicapped children, among others.

Urabe’s group made onsite visits to the flood mitigation project in Ormoc City, the strengthening maternal and child health services (SMACHS) project in Leyte, including the birthing facility in Tanauan, Leyte, and the personal computers for public schools project at the Cirilo Roy Montejo National School in Tacloban City.

In a briefing, Irwin Antonio, of the 4th Leyte Engineering District, said the flood mitigation project in Ormoc City was constructed after a flashflood spawned by Typhoon “Uring” devastated the city on Nov. 5, 1991. Nearly 5,000 were reportedly killed in the flashflood, another 3,000 were reported missing and some 14,000 houses were destroyed.

The phase 1 and phase 2 of the project were estimated to cost P130 million.

The SMACHS and the birthing facility projects were seen by medical doctors here as a big help in lowering the incidents of child and maternal deaths in the region.

The Japanese government provided a funding of 300 million yen for the two projects that provided pre-natal, safe delivery and postpartum care services in Eastern Visayas.

On the other hand, it was learned that the public computers for schools program has helped students in their studies and made it easy for teachers to make teaching materials at the Cirilo Roy Montejo National High School.

The project was part of the P320-million Luzon and Visayas Component of Phase 4 of the Personal Computer for Public Schools.