Japan pledges ¥1 trillion in aid, investments to PHL

Japan has pledged a total of ¥1 trillion worth of Official Development Assistance (ODA) and private sector investments aimed at creating business opportunities in the Philippines over the next five years.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made the announcement in a joint statement with President Rodrigo Duterte in Malacañang following their summit meeting and signing of agreements on Thursday.

"First, for the further development of the Philippines, we will create business opportunities through ODA and private sector investments which together will be of the order of one trillion yen over the next five years," Abe said.

"The joint committee on economic cooperation and infrastructure will be launched through which both the private and public sectors will provide a strong underpinning for nation building," he added.

Abe said that Japan would contribute to improve the infrastructure in the Philippines by sharing their technology.

"Second, we will leverage Japanese technology and know-how to the fullest extent to positively cooperate for the improvement of infrastructure in Metro Manila and the whole of the Philippines," Abe said.

Two-way street

Japanese Foreign Press Secretary Yasuhisa Kawamura in a news briefing in Malacañang said that the Philippines must also commit to ensure good business environment.

"The bottomline of this announcement is that Japan is very eager of this cooperation for the business and the economic development of the Philippines by utilizing all those available resources," Kawamura said at a news briefing.

Abe, according to Kawamura, stressed that the Japanese pledge was "not just a one-way inflow of investments of money from Japan."

"I'd like to emphasize that a business-friendly environment on the side of the Philippines is also necessary. We'll very much appreciate it if the Philippine officials and the private sector will cooperate with us," Kawamura said.

Kawamura said that the members of the joint committee on economic cooperation and infrastructure on the Japanese side have already been identified. —NB, GMA News