Japan, nagbigay ng PH grant para bumili ng vaccine cold chain equipment

NAGBIGAY ang Japan sa Pilipinas ng 687-million-yen (P304.7-million) grant upang makabili ang Department of Health (DOH) ng mas maraming cold chain equipment para sa COVID-19 vaccines.

Nilagdaan ng Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) at ng Philippine government ang grant agreement sa ilalim ng programa ng Japanese government para sa COVID-19 crisis response emergency support.

“Grants need not be repaid. The program aims to establish an effective and safe vaccination system and to contain a further spread of COVID-19, through providing cold chain and medical equipment as promptly as possible,” ayon sa kalatas ng Jica.

Ipinapakita rin sa dokumento ng Jica na ipatutupad ng DOH ang programang ito sa buong bansa sa susunod na 15 buwan.

Popondohan ng Jica ang pagbili ng cold chain equipment gaya ng portable vaccine boxes, refrigerated vaccine transport vehicles, at maging vaccine transport trucks.

Magbibigay din ang JICA ng technical assistance sa DOH para makakuha at makapag- maintain ng vaccine equipment.

“The program contributes to ‘last one mile support’ of the government of Japan for ensuring vaccination in every country. The mRNA-based vaccines such as those churned out by Moderna and Pfizer required ultra cold storage of -70 to -80 degrees Celsius. Due to lack of cold chain equipment and infrastructure, keeping COVID-19 vaccines under low temperature was a challenge in far-flung parts of the country; as such, mass vaccination lagged behind in rural areas compared to the urban population,” ayon sa JICA.

“COVID-19 has underlined a fundamental reality for many nations — we are all connected and we need to help one another so we can deal with all the challenges from the pandemic. As we sign new projects for cold storage and logistics equipment for the Philippines’ efforts against COVID-19, I hope that Jica and the Philippines continue to work in unity for a safe, stable, and secure future,” ang pahayag naman ng chief representative ng JICA sa Pilipinas na si Eigo Azukizawa sa hiwalay na kalatas.

Tinuran naman ng tanggapan ng Jica sa Pilipinas na ang karagdagang cold chain logistics support, ang grant ay aabot sa 885 million yen (P392.5 million).

Taong 2020, nagbigay ang Japan ng 2-billion-yen grant sa DOH upang makabili ng medical equipment at paigtingin ang health defense sa gitna ng napakahaba at napakatagal na laban sa pandemiya .

Noong nakaraang taon, pinalawig nito ng panibagong 687-million-yen grant sa DOH sa ilalim ng COVID-19 crisis response emergency support.

Ang Japan, ang itinuturing na top source ng official development assistance (ODA) ng Pilipinas, kabilang na ang “concessional loans and grants.” (Daris Jose)