Japan's Official Development Assistance White Paper 2006
Next PageMain Text > Part II ODA DISBURSEMENTS IN FISCAL YEAR 2005 > Chapter 2 Details about Japan's ODA > Section 2. Measures for Each of the Priority Issues > 3. Addressing Global Issues > (6) Disaster Reduction and Post-Disaster Reconstruction
(6) Disaster Reduction and Post-Disaster Reconstruction
Disasters such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, strong winds, heavy rainfalls, floods, landslides, and droughts occur in various ways around the world almost every year. Large-scale disasters not only claim the lives and property of many, but also sometimes cause serious and long-term effects on the overall economic and social systems of the country. In particular, many of the developing countries are vulnerable to disasters, and therefore suffer extremely serious damage. Also, as the poor population often suffer larger damage and end up as disaster refugees, prolonged secondary damage such as the deterioration of sanitary conditions and food shortages has become a major problem.
Based on the advanced knowledge and technology acquired through past experiences with disasters, Japan is strongly aware of the importance of the disaster reduction and post-disaster reconstruction sector as well as emergency assistance and is giving active international cooperation. In particular, at the World Conference on Disaster Reduction held in Kobe in January 2005 the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015 was adopted as the basic guideline for disaster reduction activities by the international community over the following 10 years, and Japan is promoting its world-wide implementation in cooperation with the UN. At the conference Japan announced its Initiative for Disaster Reduction through ODA, which represents Japan's basic policies regarding cooperation for disaster reduction through ODA, and expressed its intent to continue to actively support the self-help efforts by developing countries in building a disaster-resilient society through institution building, human resource development, development of economic and social infrastructure and other measures. Furthermore, at the Asian-African Summit which was held in Indonesia in April 2005 Japan announced that it would be providing more than US$2.5 billion over the next five years in assistance for disaster prevention, and reconstruction measures primarily in Asia and Africa. The expectations of the international community toward the role of Japan are heightening further. In FY2006 the Government of Japan established Grant Aid for Disaster Prevention and Reconstruction and it is working on enhancing disaster reduction and post-disaster reconstruction assistance.
The major earthquake that occurred in Pakistan and the surrounding areas on October 8, 2005, killed approximately 75,000 people, primarily in Pakistan but also in India and Afghanistan. It caused enormous damage, including devastating destruction of houses, roads, and other infrastructure. In response, Japan took prompt and positive action as a member of Asian community. In the aftermath of the earthquake, the Government dispatched the Japan Disaster Relief teams (JDR, one Relief Team, two Medical Teams, one Self-Defense Forces (SDF) unit) and provided emergency relief goods equivalent to approximately ¥25 million. In addition, it extended US$20 million in emergency grant aid, ¥4.0 billion in non-project grant aid, and approximately ¥11.2 billion in yen loans. Moreover, Japan assisted in the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the afflicted areas with US$20 million of emergency humanitarian assistance through international organizations, and a total of US$10 million of assistance through the World Bank and the Japan Fund of the ADB.
Rescue activities after major earthquakes, such as one in Pakistan (Photo: JICA)
Indonesia, which was hit by the major earthquake off the coast of Sumatra in December 2004, has been suffering from a series of serious disasters such as earthquake, tsunami, flood and landslide in 2006. In May, the earthquake hit central Java, and the earthquake and tsunami occurred on the coast of southwest Java in July. In response to these damages, Japan has extended various assistances including provisions of emergency relief goods. In response to the earthquake in Yogyakarta and Central Java in May, the Government of Japan dispatched JDR teams (one Medical Team and one SDF unit) and provided emergency relief goods equivalent to approximately ¥20 million, including tents, water purifiers, generators, and other supplies. It also provided US$4 million in emergency grant aid to the Government of Indonesia and US$1 million in emergency grant aid through the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (the IFRC). In response to the earthquake and tsunami on the coast of southwest Java in July, the Government of Japan provided emergency relief goods equivalent to approximately ¥13 million, including tents, water tanks, and other supplies. Additionally, for the flood and landslide disasters the Government provided emergency relief goods equivalent to approximately ¥12 million in January and again in June. Japan established the Joint Committee on Disaster Reduction with Indonesia, a country prone to natural disasters, based on the agreement by the leaders of the two countries in June 2005. It was co-chaired by government ministers responsible for disaster reduction in the two countries. In July 2006 the Committee completed a report which suggested guidelines for comprehensive and effective disaster mitigation and preparedness in Indonesia. Taking into account the importance of disaster prevention and challenges presented by this report, Japan will be continuously providing assistance related to priority issues that contribute to the strengthening of the disaster reduction in Indonesia.
Medical activities after the May 2005 Earthquake Disaster in Central Java (Photo: JICA)
Disbursements of financial cooperation in the disaster reduction and post-disaster reconstruction sector in FY2005 came to approximately ¥89.8 billion, including grant aid approximately of ¥22.6 billion, yen loans of approximately ¥55.9 billion, and assistance to international organizations of approximately ¥6.6 billion. Examining the bilateral financial cooperation38 by the type of disaster, earthquakes and tsunamis accounted for the highest ratio at 41.7%, followed by strong winds and floods at 25.6%, and soil erosion at 19.2%. By region, the largest amount of assistance of 89.0% went to Asia, followed by Africa at 8.0%, and the Middle East at 1.1%. Regarding international emergency assistance, five JDR teams, with a cumulative total of approximately 400 members were dispatched, and 19 provisions of emergency relief goods equivalent to approximately ¥300 million were extended.
Box II-4 About the Receipt of the "Green Leaf" National Environmental Award from the Maldives
Chart II-19 Disbursements in the Disaster Prevention Sector by Type
Chart II-20 Disbursements in the Disaster Prevention Sector by Region
As a result of the major earthquake that took place in December 2004, off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia and the following large-scale tsunami, countries surrounding the Indian Ocean suffered damage on an unprecedented scale. In response to such serious damage, Japan declared that it would extend grant aid of US$500 million as an emergency assistance measure. About US$250 million of this was allocated to bilateral grant aid (non-project grant aid) for the countries that suffered serious damage, including ¥14.6 billion to Indonesia, ¥8.0 billion to Sri Lanka, and ¥2.0 billion to Maldives. The disbursement was completed in January 2005.
Recipient countries have been utilizing the funding extended by Japan to implement a series of projects to purchase emergency supplies for the victims of the disaster and reconstruct the afflicted areas, including the reconstruction and repair of facilities. Specifically, they are purchasing pharmaceuticals, water tankers, equipment needed for the fishing industry, and other supplies; repairing roads that suffered damages; restoring land registers; reconstructing public facilities; reconstructing police stations; and carrying out shoreline protection work. As a result, in October 2006 the sealing of a 40 kilometer section of the west coast road in Indonesia was completed. In addition of the approximately 6,500 land registers that had suffered water damage, approximately 3,000 had been restored to readable condition. In Sri Lanka four police stations have been reconstructed. In the Maldives, trunk roads on atolls that were destroyed have been reconstructed. In this way the various projects being implemented through assistance from Japan are steadily advancing the reconstruction of the afflicted areas and they are highly praised by the afflicted countries.
To provide bilateral cooperation in the disaster sector, Japan has also been providing assistance regarding software such as human resource development, in addition to assistance regarding hardware, such as economic and social infrastructure development. In the area of disaster reduction, Japan dispatched 33 experts, accepted 413 trainees, and implemented 23 technical cooperation projects in FY2005. Specifically, the Government has embarked on a technical cooperation project to develop the human resources needed for weather forecasting and data analysis in Mongolia, a country with severe meteorological conditions due to its geography. In Mongolia climatic factors such as droughts, dzud (damage from severe winter conditions), and other factors have a major impact on agriculture, the livestock raising industry and other socio-economic activity, so it is important to develop meteorological data. Japan has already provided assistance for drawing up a Master Plan for the meteorological service and provided equipment through grant aid, and furthermore, it is expected that developing human resources who can utilize such equipment effectively will enable Mongolia to achieve more precise weather forecasting.