Japan Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Yutaka Kikuta
By Anthony Maliki
The Ambassador of Japan to Nigeria, Mr. Yutaka Kikuta on Tuesday attended the signing ceremony of exchange of notes for the project for strengthening the diagnostic capacity of Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) in Abuja.
According to a statement from the Embassy to Apex News, the Government of Japan extended the aid of JPY 1.580 billion (equivalent of $14.246m) to the Government of Nigeria in order to contribute to disease control in Nigeria.
In the statement, the project is to establish bio-safety level 3 laboratory facilities for surveillance at the National Standard Surveillance Laboratory of NCDC in Abuja in order to strengthen the response to infectious diseases and the function of surveillance, leading to improve Nigeria’s strong and comprehensive health system.
Also, it stated that the aid is aimed at promoting resilient health systems for quality of life-a guiding principle adopted at the Nairobi Declaration of Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VI), held in 2016.
It pointed out that the people and the Government of Japan hope the project will enable more Nigerians to have improved access to health systems and thus will contribute to sustainable development and poverty reduction in the country.
The ceremony, at the Conference Room of the Honourable Minister, Ministry of Budget and National Planning was also attended the Chief Representative of JICA Nigeria Office, the Honourable Minister of Budget and National Planning, representatives of the Ministry of Health and representatives from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control among others.
