Japan donates to UNHCR efforts in Mindanao

MANILA, Philippines - The Japanese government has donated 30-million yen to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in the Philippines, beefing up the UN agency’s protection program for the internally displaced and helping build peace in Mindanao.

“Violence and clan feuds may have rocked the island. But Japan has once again proved an ally in bringing peace to Min­danao,” Bernard Kerblat, UNHCR representative to the Philippines, told the media last Monday.

Kerblat previously met with Japanese Ambassador Toshinao Urabe to express the UN refugee agency’s gratitude to the Japanese government for supporting UNHCR’s projects for people uprooted by decades of conflict and violence. 

Urabe said Japan is pleased to contribute to the protection efforts of the UN agency. The donation is part of a much larger 5.2-billion yen contribution from Japan to UNHCR worldwide this year.

“All our projects are in support of the Philippine government’s overall drive to create an environment of peaceful co-existence between communities and families torn apart by conflict and strife,” Kerblat said.

“We are grateful to Japan for helping us protect the internally displaced – people forced to flee from conflict – and bringing them home to safety and dignity,” Kerblat added.  

The 30-million yen donation will go to community empowerment projects in the most conflict-affected areas in Mindanao and to monitoring and responding to the protection needs of the forcibly displaced.

It will also be used to help ensure that communities receiving displaced people are not overburdened in goodwill and resources.

Around 447,213 people – including those who have returned to communities – remain affected by conflict in six provinces in Mindanao, according to a UN report released this year.