Japan gives RI $15.6m grant
Japan gives RI $15.6m grant
JAKARTA (JP): Japan will extend grant assistance worth 1.67 billion yen (US$15.6 million) to Indonesia for the improvement of health care services in Sulawesi and fire prevention in urban areas.
Diplomatic notes on the grant assistance for the two projects were signed here yesterday by Japanese Ambassador to Jakarta Taizo Watanabe and Julwis Yatim, acting director general for foreign economic relations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Watanabe said the grant was part of Japan's Global Issues Initiative which focuses on the promotion and improvement of health, environment and population controls.
"Indonesia is one of the 12 countries which get our grant assistance in the framework of the Global Issues Initiative," Watanabe said.
Out of the assistance, the health care project in Sulawesi will get 1.2 billion yen, while the project on the improvement of urban fire prevention will receive 466 million yen.
The latter project will provide sufficient facilities and equipment to 11 cities for the immediate upgrading and strengthening of fire prevention, fire fighting and rescue systems.
The 11 cities include Medan in North Sumatra, Palembang in South Sumatra, Jakarta, Bandung in West Java, Semarang in Central Java, Yogyakarta, Surabaya in East Java, Denpasar in Bali, Pontianak in West Kalimantan, Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan and Ujungpandang in South Sulawesi.
Watanabe said Japan will provide two fire engines for each of the cities. The engines are especially designed to extinguish fires in slum areas, not in high-rise buildings.
"As for the high-rise buildings, they can take care of themselves," Watanabe said.
He assured that the Japanese government will continue its grant assistance to countries which still need it, including Indonesia.
"We're going to follow it up," he said.
According to the World Bank's latest report on external finance for developing countries, official grants rose very slightly to $32.9 billion last year from $32.5 billion in 1994.
Overseas Development Assistance dropped 3 percent a year in real terms over 1993 to 1995. In any given year, 30 to 35 percent of such assistance was directed to only 10 countries. Some 75 percent of Japan's Overseas Development Assistance goes to East Asia, particularly China, Indonesia and the Philippines. (rid)