1. On December 5, following the Japan-Madagascar Summit Meeting held in Tokyo, Mr. Taro Kono, Minister for Foreign Affairs, and H.E. Mr. Henry Rabary-Njaka, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Madagascar, exchanged notes concerning two grant aid projects (670 million yen in total), in the presence of Mr. Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan, and H.E. Mr. Rakotoarimanana Hery Martial Rajaonarimanpianina, President of Madagascar.
2. The overview of the projects is as follows:
(1) Support for food security in Madagascar (“Food Assistance” grant aid; grant amount of 470 million yen)
Madagascar faced a rainfall shortage due to unseasonable weather from late 2016 to early 2017, and it also suffered flood damage from a major cyclone this March, resulting in a decline in the size of its rice harvest. Furthermore, the country’s southern region constantly faces droughts caused by El Nino, and as a result around 2.1 million citizens are suffering from food shortages. With this grant aid, the Government of Japan will implement food assistance by providing 7,000 to 8,000 tons of rice to Madagascar, for the purpose of enhancing the country’s food security and improving the state of nutrition (PDF).
Japan pledged to promote food security in Africa at the Sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VI), which was held in August 2016, and this grant aid will contribute to realizing that pledge.
(2) Support for improving access to safe water in Madagascar (“The Economic and Social Development Programme” grant aid; grant amount of 200 million yen).
In Madagascar, around half the country’s citizens utilize uncontrolled sources of water such as rivers, lakes and marshes. Access to safe water is limited, and waterborne diseases caused by unsanitary water are rampant. With this grant aid, Japan will contribute water purification systems to Madagascar’s Ministry of Water, Energy and Hydrocarbon, for the purpose of improving access to safe water in Madagascar.
Japan pledged to improve access to safe water and hygiene for 10 million people (PDF) at TICAD V, which was held in June 2013, and this grant aid will contribute to realizing that pledge.
[Reference] Japan-Madagascar Relations (Basic Data)
Madagascar’s total land area is approximately 590,000 square kilometers (approximately 1.6 times that of Japan), its population is approximately 24.89 million people (2016, World Bank) and its Gross National Income (GNI) per capita is 400 US dollars (2016, World Bank).
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan.
Source: Apo-Opa
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