JICA appoints new chief in Philippines

MANILA, Philippines — The Japanese government’s official development assistance arm has appointed a seasoned development finance expert as its new chief representative to the Philippines.

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) announced yesterday that Eigo Azukizawa has been appointed to succeed Yoshio Wada who led JICA’s operations in the Philippines for the past two years.

Azukizawa is a graduate of political science and economics at Waseda University.

He served at the former Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) Paris Office from 2005 up to 2006 and held key finance management positions in JICA from 2008 up to 2020.

He supported policies and operations in JICA Tokyo headquarters under the Office of the President in 2015 up to 2018 and as deputy director general of the Southeast Asia and Pacific Department from 2018 up to 2020.

He was also involved in development finance for more than 12 years at the former Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund (OECF), Japan’s loan aid implementing agency.

He previously served in the JICA Philippine Office from 2013 to 2015, overseeing JICA’s infrastructure development projects.

“While these are challenging times globally, particularly with disruptions in human security, JICA assures the Philippines that we will continue to strengthen our trusted partnership — sharing Japan’s experience and knowhow, building capacity, and creating win-win solutions,” said Azukizawa.

JICA is currently the largest provider of official development assistance to the Philippines with the total value of programs in fiscal year 2018 placed at ¥60.135 billion (Roughly P28.5 billion). To date, the agency has around 70 development cooperation projects nationwide focused on promoting sustainable economic growth, overcoming vulnerability, and promoting peace and development in Mindanao.

Azukizawa said JICA will continue to leverage the expertise and investment experience of the Japanese private sector in its projects.

“I call on our partners to work closely with JICA and harness innovative solutions and agile ways to accomplish our projects,” he said.