Japan Extends 3.5 Mil USD Worth of Food Assistance to Ethiopia

Ethiopia and Japan have signed a food assistance program that worth approximately 3.5 million USD on Tuesday.

The Minister of Finance, Ahmed Shide and Japanese Ambassador to Ethiopia, Ito Takako signed the exchange of notes for the “Food Assistance Programme.”

The grant aid is worth approximately 3.5 million USD, equivalent to 180 million Birr, according to Japanese embassy in Ethiopia.

Some 2,250 tons of Japanese rice will be provided to Ethiopia through this grant aid in order to combat food insecurity in the country brought on by various factors including droughts, conflict in the north and the extremely high number of IDPs.

The grant aid will help Ethiopia not only to combat food insecurity but also to reduce imports and contribute to saving foreign currency as a lot of rice consumption in Ethiopia has relied on imports recently.

Since access to food is a human right and as it is the main pillars of Japan’s assistance to the agricultural sector, Japan has supported rice production in Ethiopia since 2015, adding that Japan has supported Ethiopia through the Food Assistance Programme for two consecutive years.

The Government of Japan has been actively supporting the development of Ethiopia and contributing to the improvement of people’s lives through various schemes, particularly in the fields of infrastructure, agriculture, industry, education and health.

Japan will continue to support Ethiopia’s development efforts through various Japanese Assistance Projects and other assistance modalities.

Source: Ethiopia News Agency