Members of PH Congress Visits Tokyo to Study Japan’s ODA to PH

From left: Acting Secretary of the Committee on Ways and Means Carmelita Jimenez (House of Representatives), Congressman Harlin Neil Abayon III (Aangat Tayo Party List), Deputy Director General for Southeast Asia 5, 6 and the Pacific Eigo Azukizawa (Japan International Cooperation Agency), Senior Vice President Shinya Ejima (Japan International Cooperation Agency), and Congressman Dakila Carlo Cua (Lone District of Quirino). (Diane Bartolome photo)

TOKYO 18 July 2018 — The Congressional Oversight Committee on the Official Development Assistance (COCODA) of the Philippine House of Representatives—represented by Congressman Dakila Carlo Cua of the Lone District of Quirino, and Congressman Harlin Neil Abayon III of the Aangat Tayo Party List—conducted a study visit on Japan’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) to the Philippines on 09 July 2018 in Tokyo, Japan.

COCODA met with officials from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), who briefed them on the current projects in the Philippines that fall under JICA’s priority areas: (1) strengthened infrastructure for sustainable growth; (2) ensuring human security for inclusive growth; and (3) peace and development in Mindanao.

COCODA also met with officials from the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), Ministry of Finance (MOF) and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), who briefed them on Japan’s recently revised Development Cooperation Policy for the Philippines as well as the Philippines-Japan bilateral cooperation in various fields, particularly infrastructure development, energy, improvement of living standards, public safety, information and communications, environment, agriculture, disaster risk reduction, and peace and development in Mindanao.

Congressman Cua thanked the Japanese government for being the Philippines’ major development partner, and assured them that Japan has made a smart investment in the Philippines.

COCODA visited a subway construction site near Shin-Yokohama Station in Kanagawa Prefecture.

The construction technology used for the new subway line that will link Shin-Yokohama to Tokyo will also be applied to the construction of the Metro Manila Subway, one of the flagship projects under the “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure program.

The Philippines and Japan signed the first tranche of the loan agreement amounting to JPY 104.530 billion for the partial operability of the Metro Manila Subway (Phase I) on 16 March 2018.

Ambassador to Japan Jose C. Laurel V hosted a dinner for COCODA, provided an opportunity to exchange views on Philippines-Japan relations, including the positive results of the study visit.

COCODA is mandated to conduct a debt audit on several contracted loans by the Philippine government, by virtue of a special provision in the Republic Act 10924 or the 2017 General Appropriations Act.

The study visit in Tokyo was aimed at understanding ODA procedures and status of ODA-funded projects from Japan. Japan remains as the Philippines’ largest source of bilateral ODA. END

For more information, visit This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it./ www.tokyope.dfa.gov.ph/ www.tokyo.philembassy.net/ https://www.facebook.com/PHLinJapan/

COCODA met with Japanese government officials led by Ms. Yukiko Okano, Director, Country Assistance Planning Division I, International Cooperation Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (center); Mr. Hirotaka Ono, Deputy Director, Second Southeast Asia Division, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (second row); Mr. Yuji Yamashita, Director for International Strategies, Policy Bureau, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (third from right); and Ms. Mayumi Tomita-Sils, Senior Deputy Director, Office of Development Finance, International Bureau, Ministry of Finance (second from right). (Toshifumi Ishida photo)

COCODA with officials from Japan Railway Construction Transport and Technology Agency (JRTT), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Philippine Embassy in Tokyo. (Kanami Namiki photo)

COCODA conducts a subway construction site visit near Shin-Yokohama Station in Kanagawa Prefecture. (Diane Bartolome photos)

Ambassador Jose C. Laurel V (center) hosted a Japanese-style dinner for Congressman Cua, Congressman Abayon and Ms. Jimenez. Ambassador Laurel was accompanied by First Secretary and Administrative Officer Leah Rodriguez (rightmost) and Second Secretary and Economic Officer Cassandra Sawadjaan (leftmost). (Tokyo PE photo)