By Roy Mabasa
The Japanese government has officially turned over P4 million worth of new health facility and medical equipment to the local government of Pateros to help improve the delivery of basic services to the nearly 15,000 residents of Barangay Aguho and its nearby areas.
(Embassy of Japan in the Philippines / MANILA BULLETIN)
Japanese Embassy Second Secretary Dr. Takeo Okada turned over the completed project last week to Pateros officials led by Mayor Miguel Ponce III and Vice Mayor Gerald German. Also in attendance were Department of Health (DOH) Undersecretary Gerardo Bayugo, DOH-National Capital Region Assistant Director and Maria Paz Corrales.
According to the Japanese Embassy, the construction of a new health facility was conceptualized due to the increasing population in the area and the old health center could no longer accommodate all the patients who need affordable health services.
It added that the old health center was already dilapidated, damaged by termites and with leaking roofs and was no longer capable of providing a suitable medical environment for its patients.
The project was initially approved in 2014 and is part of Japan’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) through the Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGP).
In 2015, the Japanese released US$ 96,775 (about P4 million) to Pateros for the construction of a new health facility and the procurement of new medical equipment.
As the top ODA donor for the Philippines, the Japanese government launched the GGP in the country in 1989 for the purpose of reducing poverty and helping various communities engaged in grassroots activities.
To date, a total of 534 grassroots projects have been implemented by the GGP.
“Japan believes that this project will not only strengthen the friendship between the peoples of Japan and the Philippines but also contribute in sustaining strategic partnership between the two countries,” the Japanese embassy said in the statement.