Grant Aid for Increase of Food Production for Underprivileged Farmers in Mindanao, Republic of the Philippines

March 18, 2005

To support the project, "Emergency Rehabilitation of Agri-Based Livelihood for Disadvantaged Farmers and Returning Internally Displaced People in Mindanao in the Republic of the Philippines" of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Government of Japan has decided to extend a grant aid (Grant Aid for Increase of Food Production) amounting 200 million yen. Notes to this effect were exchanged on March 18 (Fri) in Rome between Ms. Nobuko Matsubara, Japanese Ambassador to Italy, and Mr. Davaid Harcharik, Deputy Director General of FAO.
Mindanao in the Philippines is blessed with a wide land area suitable for farming. A prolonged conflict, however, has worsened the poverty and created a breeding ground of instability, which has a negative impact on the country's image as an investment destination. The conflict has also become an obstacle to the economic development of the Philippines as a whole. In view of the above, Japan announced, in December 2004, a "Support Package for Peace and Stability in Mindanao" and has expressed a firm commitment to support the efforts of the Government of the Philippines based on its priority to achieve development and stability in Mindanao.
As part of such efforts and in response to a request from the FAO, Japan has decided to support the project to improve the food self-sufficiency of underprivileged farmers in the Mindanao region by providing "Grant Aid for Increse of Food Production". With this project, FAO, in close cooperation with local governments and NGOs, will provide agricultural items of maize, cassava, vegetables, fruits and small livestock, as well as fertilizer and agricultural tools, and will also provide training necessary for producing and marketing agricultural products.
It is hoped that Japan's assistance to this project will make a contribution to enhancing self-sufficiency of food production and restoring self-reliance of underprivileged farmers in the country as well as stabilizing the political and economic situation of the region.

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