Rescuers search for victims in a tsunami-hit area in Indonesia (Source: Xinhua/VNA) Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesia and Japan have signed an exchange of notes concerning a loan worth 31.8 billion JPY to improve the Southeast Asian country’s management capacity in mitigating impacts of natural disasters.
Director of Asia Pacific Affairs of the Indonesian Foreign Ministry Santo Darmosumarto and Japanese Ambassador to Indonesia Masafumi Ishii were the signatories.
Speaking at the signing ceremony on February 14, Economic Counselor of the Japanese Embassy in Jakarta Shimizu Kazuhiko said the loan project in JPY is aimed at improving Indonesia’s natural disaster mitigation capacity by encouraging the improvement of policy and system by the country’s relevant ministries.
The loan, to be channelled through the Disaster Resilience Enhancement and Management (DREAM) programme, will be payable in 15 years with an interest rate of 0.4 percent, he said.
He added that Japan disbursed part of the loan in 2019 and will continue disbursing in the next two years.
The DREAM Program will focus on four areas of activities agreed upon by the Japanese government and the Indonesian National Development Planning Agency.
They are strengthening the government's capacity in managing disaster risks; improving the understanding of disaster risks; improving the early warning system and increasing investment to reduce natural disaster risks; and promoting post-disaster recovery./.
VNA
