ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Business devider JICA seeks Philippine, BARMM projects for gender bond proceeds

JICA seeks Philippine, BARMM projects for gender bond proceeds

Published Oct 30, 2024 01:19 am

As the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) plans to raise 30 to 40 billion Japanese yen (up to about P15 billion) from its forthcoming gender bond issuance, its chief representative in the Philippines is on the lookout for local projects they can fund, especially in war-torn Mindanao.

On the sidelines of the International Conference on Women, Peace and Security (ICWPS) on Tuesday, Oct. 29, JICA Philippines chief representative Takema Sakamoto cited that the maiden gender bonds issued by the Japanese government's aid arm in 2021 had been unable to finance Philippine projects.

A report on JICA's website showed that the two-tranche gender bonds, maturing in 10 and 20 years, raised 10 billion yen each, or a total of 20 billion yen three years ago, with proceeds partially invested in 12 of the aid agency's projects certified as "2X Challenge" or those pursuing gender equality as well as women empowerment.

In Asia, projects in neighboring Cambodia, Indonesia and Vietnam as well as India, Nepal and Palestine benefitted from the first JICA gender bonds.

For the next also yen-denominated gender bond sale, with tenors of five and 10 years, slated in November, Sakamoto pointed out that fund earmarking and utilization would be sort of a global "competition" among JICA's official development assistance (ODA) beneficiary-countries, including the Philippines.

"For the Philippine government, including the Bangsamoro Transition Authority government, if they have a good idea to formulate a new project related to gender equality or mainstreaming, it would be very possible and we can consider" financing through the new JICA gender bonds, Sakamoto told Manila Bulletin.

"I hope the Philippines can consider more and more effective gender mainstreaming-related projects," Sakamoto added.

During the ICWPS side event hosted by the Embassy of Japan on Oct. 29 titled "Human Security Towards a Resilient Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) - Japan's Approach in Promoting Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Focusing on Health," the Japanese government and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) exchanged notes for their joint project called "Protection and Empowerment of Women for Addressing Women's Health Needs and Responding to Gender-Based Violence in the BARMM."

At the same event, JICA Philippines launched its technical cooperation project aimed at improving nutrition as well as strengthening child health and maternity services in the region.

"These two projects ensure the improvement of human security status amid the current compound crises that threaten the progress of multifaceted gender-mainstreaming efforts... the role of women is crucial, as indispensable agents of peace and security, in conflict-affected areas," Sakamoto remarked.

"A resilient health sector for BARMM will be a significant boost for the region's women and the promotion of WPS. Japan will continue to be a staunch advocate of the WPS agenda in the region and the wider international community," Japan's Ambassador to the Philippines Kazuya Endo said in an Oct. 29 statement.

"Japan has reinforced its role as a steadfast partner in advancing the WPS agenda. From infrastructure development to social protection programs, your contributions have directly improved the lives of countless individuals and families throughout the country," noted Budget Secretary Amenah F. Pangandaman, who was guest of honor at the side event.

Related Tags

Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) BARMM Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.