Japan has pledged P190 million to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) to help strengthen its support to the Philippine government’s COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) immunization response. 

The additional pledge is part of the Tokyo government’s assistance to 25 countries in the Southeast and Southwest Asian and Pacific Island region amounting to a total of US$41 million.

“Funding from the Government of Japan will enable UNICEF to provide vaccine cold chain equipment, training for health workers, and technical support for immunization policy, surveillance and information management,” UNICEF Philippines said in a tweet on Wednesday.

Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Koshikawa Kazuhiko commended UNICEF’s dedication in spearheading the initiative, especially during this difficult time under the pandemic. 

“Counting on the decades of cooperation between Japan and UNICEF particularly here in the Philippines, together, we will continue to provide a helping hand to Filipino children in dire situations due to COVID-19. We trust that the strong ties between Japan and the Philippines will be deepened even amid this rapidly changing environment," Koshikawa added.

The UNICEF said the funding will provide around 147 health facilities with vaccine cold rooms and solar refrigerators and 2,000 health facilities with temperature monitoring devices, train over 50 technicians to operate and maintain the new facilities, and equip 300 health care facility staff with the necessary skills for its use and monitoring. 

Other components of the program will include the development of immunization policy and procedures; building surveillance and in-country laboratory capacities for the early detection, investigation, and management of vaccine-preventable diseases; and management and strengthening of information management systems.

UNICEF Representative Oyunsaikhan Dendevnorov said the costs of the pandemic for children are immediate and, if unaddressed, “may persist throughout their lives.” 

“The availability and equitable distribution of vaccines is critical for putting an end to this global pandemic. We thank the Government of Japan for their support in ensuring a robust cold chain is in place and immunization services are strengthened,” Dendevnorov said in a statement. 

The UNICEF noted that even before the COVID-19 pandemic, immunization in the Philippines has been declining. 

Citing a 2017 Philippine National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS), the UN agency said immunization coverage for 1-2-year-old children for all essential vaccines is low at 69.9 percent, far below the 95 percent target. 

Further, the Philippines was among the top 10 countries globally with the highest number of unvaccinated children for DPT3 and measles vaccine as reported in a 2019 survey.