THE Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) President Tanaka Akihiko signed a loan agreement with the Government of the Republic of the Philippines’ (GRP) Department of Finance (DOF) Secretary Carlos Dominguez III to formalize the provision of the COVID-19 Crisis Response Emergency Support Loan Phase-2 (CCRESL Phase-2).

This up to 30 billion yen loan (approximately 14 billion pesos) seeks to support the Philippine government’s efforts in promoting COVID-19 vaccination and ensuring the steadfast economic recovery in the post-COVID-19 era by providing budgetary support.

Under highly concessional terms, the loan’s repayment period is set to 11 years after a grace period of 4 years, with a fixed interest rate of 0.01% per annum.

Specifically designed by the Japanese government to address the global health crisis, the Philippine government was the first recipient of this highly concessional loan with CCRESL Phase – 1 provided in July 2020.

CCRESL Phase-2 is the second loan that provided ongoing support to the Philippines’ COVID-19 recovery efforts.

Japan has continuously provided comprehensive support to the Philippines since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This support includes over 3 million vaccine donations, grant aid for the procurement of medical equipment and establishment of laboratory surveillance sites, technical assistance for cold chain development, provision of Avigan tablets for COVID-19 treatment, as well as the big-ticket yen loan assistance through the COVID-19 Crisis Response Emergency Support Loan (CCRESL) and the Post-Disaster Standby Loan (PDSL).

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Cristina Lee-Pisco