Islamabad (TDI): Japan has extended a grant aid of 2,910 million Japanese Yen to Pakistan for a project to improve child health care facilities in South Punjab.
Notes to this effect were signed and exchanged between AKAMATSU Shuichi, Ambassador of Japan to Pakistan and Muhammad Humair Karim, Secretary of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, on Tuesday.
The grant, which amounts to about 18.62 million dollars, has been approved through JICA under the Japanese Grant-in-Aid.
Subsequently, the grant agreement was signed and exchanged between MIYATA Naoaki, the Chief Representative of JICA Pakistan Office and Miran Mohiyuddin Soomro, Senior Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Economic Affairs.
Under this project, a new child health care facility will be constructed at Children Hospital Multan, which is a public medical institution serving as the regional hub hospital in Multan district. The new facility will have the departments of Emergency, Pediatric ICU, Neonatal ICU, Surgery, and Laboratory.
It will also improve the function as an only specialized tertiary care hospital in the region through the expansion of the facility and the provision of medical equipment which are necessary to provide the healthcare services for high-risk neonates, infants and children with serious illness or injuries.
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It will contribute to improving the quality of healthcare services for children in the southern Punjab and adjacent provinces as well.
This project will also serve as a center of excellence meeting the requirement of a modern teaching hospital with international standards.
It will not only alleviate the pressure of tertiary hospitals in other surrounding cities but also open up opportunities for families from all over southern part of Punjab, with improved accessibility and better chances of saving lives.
In his remarks, the Ambassador of Japan assured the commitment of his government to work closely with the government of Pakistan to further strengthen the friendly ties and bilateral cooperation.
“Today’s signing marks an important step in our continued cooperation to improve the quality of health services for children in Pakistan. I am confident that this project will make a significant contribution to pediatric health care in South Punjab and beyond,” he said.
Chief Representative of JICA’s Pakistan office noted “This project will help in achieving the targets of sustainable development goals by reducing the infant mortality rates and raising the standard of pediatric emergency care”.
