Japan turns over new bridge in Ifugao
JAPAN turned over Alimit-Nattum RCDG (Reinforced Concrete Deck Girder) bridge with access roads constructed through Japan-donated “Forestland Management Project.” It now provides easier access for the facilitation of proper forest management as well as for the transport of agricultural and non-agricultural products of upland communities, particularly indigenous peoples.
Sakamoto Takema, Chief Representative of JICA Philippines attended the event together with Tachikawa Jumpei, First Secretary and Agriculture Attache at the Japanese Embassy. Ifugao Representative Solomon Chungalao, Governor Jerry Dalipog, Mayoyao Mayor Jimmy Padchanan, Jr., DENR CAR Executive Director Ralph Pablo and DENR Director Al Orolfo were also present.
The 80-meter-long bridge with an access road is part of the Forestland Management Project’s Agroforestry Support Facility subproject. Before this subproject, there only was a small hanging bridge which merely one pedestrian can cross between Barangays Alimit and Nattum. The P73 million-infrastructure will connect two barangays, allowing improved mobility, access to social services, and connectivity not only for the 1,626 residents of these two barangays but also for neighboring communities. This sub-project also includes the planting of over 3,400 hectares of forest trees, agro-forestry activities, fuelwood, and silvopasture for livestock.
On the domestic front, Ambassador Koshikawa Kazuhiko regards this initiative as another milestone in strengthening cooperation between Japan and the Philippines on Marcos new administration’s top priority issue of climate change, while meeting the country’s urgent needs and long-term interests and improving the quality of life of the local people.
This endeavor forms part of the 10-year 9.244 billion yen Forestland Management Project (FMP) of the Government of Japan through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
The FMP, which was launched ten years ago, highlighted environmental protection, including forestland management, as a major pillar of collaboration between the Philippines and Japan. The FMP aims to protect 71,300 hectares of forest in watershed areas throughout the country, including the Upper Magat and Cagayan River Basins, the Pampanga River Basin, and the Jalaur River Basin. Ifugao, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, Nueva Ecija, and Iloilo are among them.