Vice President Sara Z. Duterte and JICA President Tanaka Akihiko (Photo by OVP MPRD)

MANDALUYONG CITY, 17 January 2023 – Vice President Sara Z. Duterte received the President of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Dr. Tanaka Akihiko, in a courtesy call at the Office of the Vice President (OVP) Central Office in Mandaluyong City.

The Vice President congratulated the JICA President on his reappointment as the President of JICA, who previously held the same position from 2012 to 2015. Vice President Duterte thanked the latter for JICA’s continuous support and commitment to the country through its development assistance projects, which are consistent with the priorities of the Philippine government.

Vice President Duterte acknowledged that Davao had benefitted so much from JICA including the ongoing Bypass Construction Project, which aims to improve accessibility to main infrastructure facilities in the city and mitigate traffic congestion. The Vice President also expressed appreciation for the disarmament and socio-economic projects implemented by JICA in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) that contributed to the peace and security in the region.

Vice President Sara Z. Duterte and JICA President Tanaka Akihiko with OVP Undersecretary Zuleika T. Lopez, DFA Assistant Secretary Nathaniel Imperial, JICA Officials and OVP staff. (Photo by OVP MPRD) JICA President Tanaka conveyed the commitment of their agency to continue to support the Philippines in its development projects and shared that the Philippines is JICA’s largest partner this year. Dr. Tanaka noted that JICA had conducted several projects with other countries to promote basic education and offered his agency’s support in preparing and designing projects for the betterment of basic education in the Philippines.

The Philippines and JICA celebrate more than six decades of strategic development partnership anchored on key three pillars: achieving sustainable economic growth, overcoming vulnerability, and peace and development in Mindanao.