Bohol is set to receive rice from Japan, which will benefit the typhoon victims, according to reports on Feb. 22, 2022.
Japanese ambassador Koshikawa Kazuhiko and National Food Administrator (NFA) Judy Carol Dansal jointly welcomed the 300 metric tons of rice that arrived from Japan ok Feb. 21, 2022.
The rice stock is from the ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve (APTERR) initiative, reports add. The rice stocks are now stored at the NFA warehouse.
Aside from Bohol, typhoon victims in Cebu and Surigao del Norte will also receive allocations from the said rice stock, according to a press release from the Japanese embassy.
During the official inspection of the rice stock, Koshikawa emphasized that as the Philippines’ neighbor and friend, Japan fully commits to support the country’s efforts to build back better from the typhoon damage, and this rice assistance is one of the commitments coming from Japan.
“We hope these tons of rice will be delivered soon to nourish typhoon affected families,” he stressed.
APTERR is a regional cooperation started in 2012, which aims to strengthen food security, poverty alleviation and malnourishment eradication among its member countries.
To accomplish its common goal, the APTERR Parties have agreed to establish rice stocks to assist member countries in times of large-scale natural disasters.
In the Philippines, several thousands of tons of stockpiled rice from Japan under APTERR were distributed to previous typhoon victims during Typhoon Yolanda in 2013, Typhoon Ineng in 2015 and Typhoon Jenny in 2019, to name a few.
In 2020, Japan also provided 425 metric tons of rice to households affected by the Taal Volcano eruption and last year, pre-cooked rice were distributed to families affected by the Coronavirus disease (Covid) in Quezon City and the City of Manila as well as selected parts of Bulacan and Cavite under the APTERR.
The rice stock will be released to the beneficiaries as soon as the APTERR council gives its go signal, reports say.
