Equipment for typhoon Yolanda rehabilitation, recovery
JAPAN government turned over the equipment of National Maritime Polytechnic (NMP) to the Government of the Philippines in a ceremony held on July 27 in Tacloban City, Leyte as part of the projects under the “Japan-funded Program for the Rehabilitation and Recovery from Typhoon Yolanda”.
The ceremony was attended by First Secretary of the Embassy of Japan, Koji Otani and Undersecretary of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Nicon F. Fameronag.
Through the grant project, NMP equipment that was severely damaged by Typhoon Yolanda in November 2013 was rehabilitated to enable NMP, which is recognized as one of the major seafarers’ education and training facilities in the Philippines, to continue their training activity for seafarers.
Philippines is recognized as the country supplying the largest number of seafarers in the world and many Philippine seafarers are also working on Japanese ships. The program is expected to benefit not only the country’s economy but also the activities of Japanese shipping companies.
The Program for the Rehabilitation and Recovery from Typhoon Yolanda provides assistance for recovery and reconstruction in areas affected by typhoon and focuses on social infrastructure such as healthcare facilities, schools, and local government offices; economic infrastructure such as airport, common industrial facilities and power facilities; and disaster preparedness infrastructure such as meteorological radar systems.
Through this Program, Japan helps the Philippines to build a resilient society against natural disasters and achieve sustainable growth.
Japan, as the top ODA donor to the Philippines as well as a disaster-prone country itself, has supported the Philippines’ disaster mitigation efforts by sharing its experiences and lessons learned from past natural disasters.
This project, with its policy of “Build Back Better”, is expected to further foster the strategic partnership between the two countries and serve as a model for other disaster-prone areas of the Philippines.