Japan Loans Pakistan US$65 Million For Polio Eradication

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will provide up to US$65 million to Pakistan as part of a loan agreement towards polio eradication.

AsianScientist (Aug. 16, 2011) – The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) signed a loan agreement on Monday with the Government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan (GOP) to provide up to 4,993 million yen (US$65 million) towards polio eradication.

During the visit of Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari to Japan earlier in February 2011, the governments of Japan and Pakistan issued a joint statement on the Japan-Pakistan Comprehensive Partnership, signaling Japan’s readiness to aid Pakistan in health programs such as the Pakistan Polio Initative.

The objective of the Polio Eradication Project is to optimize polio vaccination of children under five years, by procuring vaccines and providing services necessary for polio immunization activities.

Present at the signing ceremony was Mr. Hassan Nawaz Tarar, Pakistan Additional Secretary Ministry of Economic Affairs and Statistics, Economic Affairs Division, and Mr. Masataka Nakahara, Director General, South Asia Department, JICA.

As one of the polio endemic countries in the world besides Afghanistan, India, and Nigeria, Pakistan has lagged behind other countries in South Asia in terms of maternal and infant mortality.

Despite the global effort toward eradication in the final stages, polio incidence in Pakistan has crept up mainly due to large-scale population movement after the 2010 floods.

To address this problem, President Asif Ali Zardari launched a National Emergency Action Plan for Polio Eradication in February this year.

JICA, which has been providing grant aid at the Pakistan-Afghanistan border areas since 1996, is supporting the polio campaign along with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

The loan, which has a 40 year repayment period, will start in September this year and is slated for completion by June 2013.

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Source: Japan International Cooperation Agency.
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