BAGUIO CITY, Philippines -- Continuing its humanitarian aid to the Cordillera region, Japan handed over P4-million worth of medical equipment as its support toward strengthening the health system as well as maternal and child health in Apayao.
Japanese Embassy Minister for Economic Affairs, Akio Isomata led the hand over rites of the project called: “Cordillera-wide Strengthening of the Local Health System for Effective and Efficient Delivery of Maternal and Child Health Servicesâ€, in Luna town on January 24.
Department of Health Undersecretary Gerardo Bayugo, Apayao Governor Elias Bulut Jr., Luna Mayor Betty C. Verzola and CHD-CAR Regional Director Valeriano Lopez witnessed the hand-over rites.
The project seeks to improve the health condition of residents, particularly women and children, in the highlands.
Apayao is one of the most impoverished provinces in the Philippines owing to its mountainous geographic features that left most of its communities in isolation. Thus, most of the medical facilities in these areas lack the necessary equipment for the delivery of quality health care.
This project seeks to address these challenges and other disparities in the health system. Another important component of the project is the conduct of Basic Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (BEmONC) training for doctors and midwives in Car.
Isomata visited the beneficiaries of various medical equipment including the Sta. Marcela rural health unit, barangay health stations of Consuelo and Marcela towns and the Sta. Marcela Medicare and Community Hospital.
These equipment aims to equip the BEmONC-trained health workers with the essential skills to deliver extensive and efficient maternal and newborn health services.
Since 2006, Japan has provided a five-year technical assistance to strengthen the local health system in Benguet Province as well as a four-year project on maternal and child health in Ifugao.
Japan, as the top donor of Official Development Assistance (ODA) to the Philippines, has supported a wide range of projects and activities that protect and promote the health and welfare of women and children in the Philippines for the past five decades. - Artemio A. Dumlao