JICA grants P7-B assets to PCG

MANILA, Philippines - The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will extend a loan of 16.5 billion yen (around P7 billion) for the continuous modernization of the transportation assets of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).

A development cooperation agreement was signed this week between JICA president Shinichi Kitaoka and Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez for the second phase of the Maritime Safety Capability Improvement Project for the PCG, which was cleared by the National Economic and Development Authority Board in September.

“Maritime transportation is crucial to the socio-economic development of the Philippines. Aside from further strengthening our bilateral relations through President Duterte’s visit in Japan, we are committed to support the Philippines’ socioeconomic infrastructure and nation building efforts to benefit every Filipino,” JICA senior representative Tetsuya Yamada said in a statement.

The project, which will be implemented by the Department of Transportation (DoTr) and PCG, involves the acquisition of two heavy weather, high endurance 94-meter Multi-Role Response Vessels (MRRVs), to provide the PCG with vessels with a cruising range capability of 4,000 nautical miles.

This is meant to improve maritime rescue operations and enhance PCG’s capacity to respond to maritime crimes and disasters.

These vessels can be used in Sea-State 6 (wave height of up to six meters) in rough sea condition and are capable of conducting continuous maritime patrol up to 15 days at 15 knots. Each vessel will enable the PCG to recover as many as 500 passengers in the event of a maritime disaster.

With the help of new vessels, the PCG will also be able to have wider maritime coverage for strategic and national security purposes.

JICA said it was supportive of the government’s development priorities  and committed to continue providing assistance through grant aid, official development assistance (ODA) loans, and technical assistance.

The development agency has been supporting the development of the country’s maritime capability since 1980s, among these are provision of rescue and maritime safety equipment, training facilities and communication.

One of the 10 multi-role response vessels financed by JICA during the first phase of the project, the Tubbataha, has already been commissioned.

In 2014, JICA extended 1.152 billion yen in grant aid to the PCG to install a satellite based communication system and Vessel Traffic Management System to address vessel movement and poor traffic.

JICA handles technical cooperation, ODA loans and investment and grant aid for the Japanese government. It is one of the world’s largest bilateral aid agencies with its volume of cooperation amounting to $21.2 billion in 2015. It has 100 overseas offices.

Disaster preparedness

Meanwhile, Presidential Communications Office Secretary Martin Andanar bared plans for the government-run PTV4 and Radyo ng Bayan to be at par with Japan’s national TV network, NHK in terms of disaster broadcasting to reach out to the public during typhoon emergencies.

The idea is to keep the public informed and updated when disaster strikes, Andanar, who was with President Duterte during an official visit to Japan on Oct. 25 to 27, said.

Andanar met with top officials of the NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corp.) headquarters in Jinnan, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo last Wednesday. – With Christina Mendez