Japan provides assistance to boost Africa’s health system

Japan provides assistance to boost Africa’s health system

The Japanese government has said it would continue to provide assistance to enable African countries to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC) based on the concept of human security.

The government made this known through Mr Tadayuki Miyashita, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, during a virtual two-day ministerial meeting of the Tokyo International Conference on Africa’s Development (TICAD) which ended on March 27.

The meeting followed an earlier virtual press conference on the forthcoming TICAD8 scheduled to hold on Aug. 27 and Aug. 28 in Tunisia.

Miyashita said Japan considered the health of Africans as a priority and had provided various equipment and initiated programmes geared towards achieving a healthy Africa.

He said that five concrete efforts have been made to ensure a healthy Africa and that TICAD would also strive to achieve its main focus for Africa, which is centred on economy, society and stability.

“We built an effective cold chain system for vaccines storage as ‘last one-mile support,’ by providing equipment such as cold storage facilities and transportation as well as strengthening the capacity of medical personnel via UNICEF in 35 countries.

READ ALSO: 1.8 Million Candidates Registered For UTME – JAMB

“We have provided medical equipment in conjunction with capacity building for medical personnel via the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in four countries.

“We provided human resource development for the health and medical sector and strengthened vaccination capacity in African countries through UNICEF. COVID-19 vaccine support of one billion dollars was provided through the COVAX facility.

“Sponsorship of research through the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMRI) in Ghana which processes 80 per cent of PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests in Ghana, and Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) which processes 50 per cent PCR tests in Kenya.

“The research institutes are playing a central role in controlling infectious diseases in the Western and Eastern Africa,” he said.

Vice-President of JICA, Ryuichi Kato who spoke on their business model and global health initiatives for Africa, noted that the Agency had established an effective and safe vaccination system to contain further spread of COVID-19 on the continent.

Kato said that JICA had also ensured a framework of collaboration to accelerate the implementation of food and nutrition security policies in all African countries.

This, he said was made possible with international partners like the WHO, UNICEF, World Bank, FAO, IFAD, AfDB, WFP and JIRAS.

“JICA’s initiative ensured the provision of advanced medical care services at affordable cost to Egyptian children from all over the country.

“It also supported the construction of Cairo University Pediatric Hospital, popularly known as ‘Japanese Hospital’ by locals, and capacity building since 1979.

“We introduced ‘School for All’ initiative which promotes enrolment and prevents drop-out of girls as well as introduction of hand washing awareness for infection prevention.

“Next Innovation with Japan (NINJA) project was also set up to create an ecosystem to foster African entrepreneurs who can resolve social issues,” he said.

According to him, a business model “Africa KAIZEN Initiative” is in place to ensure continental movement for application of productivity improvement methods originated from the Japanese industries.

Kato further said that JICA was already utilising the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to partner Africa on trade through initiatives known as “Corridor Development Initiative” and “One Stop Border Post.”

He added that both initiatives promoted economic growth more effectively through infrastructure development and regional integration as well as facilitated cross-border movement by streamlining necessary procedures with one stop in a single facility.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that TICAD and JICA are also focusing on agriculture, a critical area for Africa’s development.