Legarda lauded the Senate 3rd reading approval of Phl-Japan Agreement on technical cooperation

SENATE OFFICE, Manila, March 16, 2011-Senator Loren Legarda, Chair of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations lauded the approval of the Senate on third reading regarding the Philippine-Japan Agreement on Technical Cooperation (ATC) where she reported that this would bring multitude of benefits to the country.

“The government has limited resources toward promoting sustainable development where we had a myriad concerns and endless economic challenges,” she said, adding that Japan is the Philippines top source of official development assistance (ODA) which finances the country where it accounted for 36% or about US$3.46 billion of the total loan commitments in 2009.

Japan ODA is a technical cooperation aimed to support the country’s development through (1) training programs in Japan; (2) the dispatch of technical cooperation experts to the Philippines to impart technical knowledge and skills to various agencies; (3) provision of equipment and materials; and (4) the conduct of development studies.

Japan is the instrument that reduces administrative burdens and helps synergize the technical assistance in the country where the magnitude and extent of Japan’s technical cooperation projects over the years underscored the importance of the Agreement on Technical Cooperation with them.

The Agreement will replace the redundant process of having to periodically exchange Note Verbales for each and every Technical Cooperation Project between Japan and the Philippines where it contains the provisions on tax exemptions, immunities, and privileges of Japanese experts dispatched here in the Philippines.

On the basis of a duly-established framework for cooperation development, it is a partnership, donor and recipient countries need to cooperate where the ATC lends emphasis in our role to the recipient country like the Philippines that is charged with directing our development agenda and assuming responsibilities as well; thus, this measure signals an even stronger and meaningful cooperation with Japan. (Jason de Asis)