Minister YOKOTA attends Handover Ceremony for Vehicles to the MSSD and Seed Grants and Advocacy Materials for Lanao del Sur Youth Networks

On 05 December 2025, Minister for Economic Affairs YOKOTA Naobumi attended the handover ceremony for “The Project for Promoting Digital Birth Registration of Populations at Risk of Statelessness in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM)” together with Ministry for Social Services and Development (MSSD) Minister Raissa Jajurie, Department of Justice (DOJ) State Counsel IV Atty. Melvin Suarez, Philppine Statistics Authority (PSA – BARMM) Director Engr. Akan Tula, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Philippines Head of National Office Maria Ermina Valdeavilla-Gallardo, and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Philippines Mindanao Field Office Chief Andreas Wuestenberg at the MSSD Grounds in Cotabato City.  The Government of Japan provided a JPY 858 million (approximately USD 5.5 million) grant to enhance the facilitation of birth registration of Sama Bajaus, unregistered children in the context of forced displacement due to armed conflict, and former combatants and their families in BARMM. The project is implemented by the UNHCR for a duration of 30 months. It also aims to benefit 130,000 unregistered individuals, with 800,000 more indirectly benefiting in the next 10 years. During the ceremony, seven (7) mobile birth registration caravan vehicles were handed over to the MSSD. Advocacy kits were also handed over to youth advocates from Lanao del Sur who will be rolling out the birth registration advocacy in the province. 

As 2026 marks the 70th Anniversary of Friendship between Japan and the Philippines, Minister Yokota expressed his hopes that the project will further contribute to the warm relationship between the two countries, including BARMM. He also expressed, “As we move forward, let us continue to work hand in hand to ensure that no Bangsamoro man, woman, nor child is left behind on the journey toward peace and progress.”