The Philippine government on Tuesday received the JPY 20-billion (approximately P8.8 billion) budgetary support pledged by the Government of Japan (GOJ), through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
In a statement issued by the Japanese Embassy in Manila, it said the turnover of the disbursement came less than a month after Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide authorized the release of another tranche of the Post-Disaster Standby Loan Phase 2 (PDSL 2) during a teleconference summit with President Duterte on May 19, 2021.
This third and latest disbursement under the PDSL 2 is intended to further augment the Philippine government’s COVID-19 war chest, especially now that the Philippines continues to show signs of recovery following the lifting of the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) in the NCR Plus.
On Twitter, Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Koshikawa Kazuhiko expressed hope that the latest tranche of loan would help the Philippines to continue the progress it has been showing in its fight against the pandemic.
Signed on September 15, 2020, the PDSL 2 is a contingency fund that entitles the Philippine government to withdraw up to JPY 50 billion (approximately P22 billion) worth of loans to help finance its response measures in the aftermath of natural and health-related disasters.
To date, Japan has infused a total of JPY 40 billion (about P17.5 billion) into the Philippine coffers, with the first tranche amounting to JPY 10 billion disbursed in October 2020 to boost the country’s pandemic response and the second tranche also worth JPY 10 billion released in January 2021 to facilitate a faster recovery from Typhoons Quinta, Rolly, and Ulysses.
The Japanese Embassy said the PDSL 2 forms part of Japan’s comprehensive assistance to the Philippines during the pandemic.
Aside from the PDSL 2, Japan provided the Philippines a JPY 50-billion financing under the COVID-19 Crisis Response Emergency Support Loan (CRESL) in July last year.
Along with the two loan packages, Japan further expressed its solidarity with the Philippines through a JPY 2-billion grant aid for the procurement of medical equipment and establishment of laboratory surveillance sites, as well as the recently announced JPY 1 billion worth of grant assistance for cold chain development in the Philippines.
During their last month’s summit, President Duterte thanked Suga for Japan’s cooperation programs, including the assistance for COVID-19 control measures.