Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), on Thursday donated hand sanitizer and washable masks for the students of Maradhoo School in Addu Atoll.
The Ministry of Education formally accepted the items from JICA on behalf of Maradhoo School during a ceremony held at the ministry.
Resident Representative of JICA Maldives Office Kawasaki Mitsuyoshi, Minister of State for Education Fathimath Naseer and Minister of State for Education Ahmed Riyaz participated in the event.
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, JICA repatriated all Japanese Volunteers (JOCVs) in Maldives, the majority of whom were teachers providing physical education. However, the volunteers continue to maintain a close relationship with their host islands and schools.
In this regard, the donation to Maradhoo School was facilitated by JOCV PE Teacher Ai Hattori, in an effort to encourage her students to adhere to safety guidelines to control the spread of COVID-19.
Speaking during the ceremony, Resident Representative Kawasaki noted that the project held significant meaning despite being considerably small scale.
Stating that the volunteer teacher also conveyed instructions on fully utilising the donated materials, Resident Representative Kawasaki noted that the washable and reusable masks were more environment friendly and affordable.
On September 30, JICA signed a USD 47.5 million (JPY 5 billion) loan agreement with the Maldivian government in order to provide an Official Development Assistance (ODA) loan. Intended to mitigate the negative social and economic impacts of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the concessional loan was extended with a fixed interest of 0.01 percent annually for a period of 15 years with a grace period of four years.
In addition to the aforementioned facility, which marks Japan's largest concessional loan extended to Maldives till date, the country had extended various other forms of support towards Maldives' COVID-19 response.
Japan previously extended grants totaling up to USD 7.5 million for the Maldivian government to equip and improve health services at atolls and regional hospitals, support small and medium enterprises in agri-businesses affected by COVID-19 and to complement the state’s efforts to respond to the pandemic.
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