The Government of Japan approved the “Luzon and Visayas Component of Phase 4 of the Personal Computers for Public Schools Project (PCPS4)” under the Japanese Non-Project Grant Assistance – Counter-value Fund (NPGA-CVF) on July 1st, 2010. The 320 million-peso grant (NPGA-CVF) will provide 10 desktop computers and computer peripherals to each of 775 public high school beneficiaries in Luzon and Visayas.
H.E. Mr. Osamu Fujimura, State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, who attended the inauguration ceremony of President and Vice-President of the Philippines as Special Envoy of Japan, directly informed H.E. Mr. Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III, President of the Republic of the Philippines of the approval of the project when State Secretary Fujimura paid a courtesy call on President Aquino at the Malacanang Palace on July 1st , 2010.
With the funding support from the Government of Japan, the Department of Trade and Industry has been spearheading the implementation of the PCPS project since 2001. Phases 1, 2, and 3 of the PCPS project have provided 3,714 public high schools with computers and, thus, reduced the computer backlog in secondary education from 75% in 2001 to 37% to date. Furthermore, the Mindanao Component of Phase 4 of the PCPS providing 425 schools in Mindanao with computers was launched on June 25, 2010. Given the approval of the Luzon and Visayas Component of Phase 4, the total amount of Japan's contribution to the PCPS project (Phase 1 to 4) is now approximately 2.3 billion pesos.
The project, which is part of Japan's concrete steps to narrow the international digital divide between developed and developing countries, seeks to contribute to the Philippine Government's efforts to develop its human capital in the field of Information Technology (IT) through its enhanced quality of IT education.
Japanese Ambassador Makoto Katsura said, “The approval of the project embodies Japan's strong support to IT education in the Philippines as we recognize the major role of IT in the global economy. In addition, the approval of the project attests Japan's continued commitment to support the Philippine Government under the new leadership of President Aquino for its poverty reduction and economic growth through ODA (official development assistance).”
The Counter-value Fund, which the Philippine Government accumulated by selling the commodities procured under Japan's Non-Project Grant Assistance, has enabled the Philippine Government to implement various projects for its socio-economic development. Notably, in addition to the PCPS project, the Counter-value Fund projects include the project to construct the Philippine Judicial Academy Convention Center of the Supreme Court in Tagaytay City, which was inaugurated in May, 2010.
Japan has been the top ODA donor to the Philippines for many years. The assistance through Japan's Non-Project Grant Assistance and its Counter-value Fund projects will firmly continue to support the Philippine Government to reduce poverty and improve its economic structure, and will further enhance the strategic partnership between the two countries.
Japanese Version
