Press Conference 13 January 2004

1. Assistance for supporting children in rural areas of the Kingdom of Cambodia through the Village Action Plans
2. Cultural assistance through the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and other organizations for earthquake disaster in the Islamic Republic of Iran

1. Assistance for supporting children in rural areas of the Kingdom of Cambodia through the Village Action Plans

   Press Secretary Hatsuhisa Takashima: Good afternoon. Today I have two announcements I would like to make.

   The first announcement is about the assistance for supporting children in rural areas of the Kingdom of Cambodia.

   The Government of Japan and the United Nations (UN) today decided to extend assistance of a total of US$1,027,425.00 through the Trust Fund for Human Security for the project "Seth Koma - Survival and Development of Children in Rural Areas of Cambodia through the Village Action Plans" to be implemented by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).

   The purpose of this project is to improve the health, nutrition and education of children and women in the poorest households in six selected provinces of Cambodia through implementing the Village Action Plans that include providing training to villagers to empower them to identify, plan and implement activities designed to improve the situations of children and women, and ensuring basic services in health, education, water, sanitation and psychological care to each of the villages targeting the most vulnerable.

   This project is expected to improve the living standards of children and women in the poorest rural areas in Cambodia and to enhance the capacity of villagers to ameliorate their living standards.

   Related Information (Assistance for supporting Children in rural areas of Cambodia through the Village Action Plans)
   
2. Cultural assistance through the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and other organizations for earthquake disaster in the Islamic Republic of Iran

   Mr. Takashima: The second announcement is on cultural assistance for the earthquake disaster in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

   On 13 January in response to the Flash Appeal announced by the United Nations, the Government of Japan has decided to extend contribution of US$500,000.00 through the UNESCO/Japan Trust Fund for the Preservation of the World Cultural Heritage to protect the cultural heritage of Bam city in southeastern Iran, which sustained large-scale damage from the earthquake that occurred on 26 December last year.

   This aid will support UNESCO's efforts to preserve cultural property in Bam, and will be utilized to implement projects for the protection and restoration of the Arg-e-Bam: Bam Citadel, a precious cultural heritage of Iran, including dispatch of Japanese experts.

   Japan will also consider the provision of preservation and restoration equipment of up to 150 million yen as cultural grant aid.

   Related Information (Earthquake Disaster in Iran (Cultural Assistance through UNESCO and Other Organizations))