Japan donates $6M to UNICEF-PHL to help kids in strife-torn areas

The Japanese government has donated $6.2 million (around P311 million) to the Philippine chapter of the United Nation's International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) for peacebuilding efforts and educational assistance for children affected by conflict in Mindanao.

In a statement on Wednesday, the UNICEF said children who were disengaged from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) were among the target beneficiaries of partnership program, which aims to “deliver quality enhancement and expansion of basic social services through basic education, early learning and social re-integration of conflict-affected children and youth.” 

The UNICEF said children in conflict-riddled areas in Mindanao are twice as likely to get malnourished.

They are also “three times as likely to miss primary school and almost twice as likely to die before age five compared to children in developing countries,” the organization said.

The UNICEF said it would assist these children by providing them with "social protection, psycho-social support, life skills training, and other learning opportunities."

UNICEF Philippines Representative Lotta Sylwander expressed her gratitude to the Japanese government for its multi-million-dollar assistance.

“We are very happy to begin a close partnership with the Government of Japan. Japan has been a staunch supporter of the peace process and the economic and social development of conflict-affected Mindanao," Sylwander said.

"We are one in our belief that children can only grow and develop to their full potential if they live in a peaceful society without armed conflict,” she added.

Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Kazuhide Ishikawa said he looks forward to the projects that would be launched through the partnership.

“We believe that education is surely key for the peace and development in the long run, this project will serve as the foundation for their future through utilizing the expertise of UNICEF. I sincerely believe that these projects will greatly contribute to the social and economic development of the Philippines,” Ishikawa said.

“At the same time, these projects will mark another milestone in strengthening the friendship between the peoples of Japan and the Philippines as well as the strategic partnership between our two countries,” he added. — Marlly Rome Bondoc/MDM, GMA News