Japan to provide Jordan $32m in grants

 Jordan and Japan signed two memorandums of understanding as per which Japan would provide two additional grants worth $32 million to Jordan that will not be part of the bilateral aid the Kingdom receives. The agreements were signed by Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Ibrahim Saif on behalf of Jordan and the Japanese ambassador, Junichi Kosuge, and Representative of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in Jordan, Toshiaki Tanaka, on behalf of the Japanese government, Jordan Petra news agency reported.Under the first agreement, signed by Ambassador Kosuge, Japan will provide through JICA a $24.5 million grant to Jordan to increase the efficiency of the water sector in the northern governorates which are hosting Syrian refugees.Under the second memorandum, which was signed by JICA representative, Jordan will receive $7.5 million to provide medical equipment to the Health Ministry and the Prince Hamzah Hospital.The minister thanked the Japanese government and the people for their continued support to Jordan and Japan’s understanding of the economic and social challenges that Jordan is facing as a result of hosting more than 600,000 Syrian refugees.For his part, the Japanese Ambassador voiced his government’s commitment to continue financial and technical support programs in aid of Jordan in various fields, adding that this would contribute to further enhancing the relationship between the two countries.