GOVERNMENT OF JAPAN EXTENDS US$161,946 GRANT ASSISTANCE FOR THREE GRASSROOTS PROJECTS

NEW DELHI: 16 January 2006

The Embassy of Japan in India, under its scheme ‘Grant Assistance for Grassroots Projects’, today decided to extend grant assistance totalling US$161,946 (approximately equivalent to Rs.74 lacs) to three Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) to support their projects on disabilities, water and education. The following NGOs and projects are receiving the Grants:

Action for Ability Development and Inclusion (AADI), formerly the Spastic Society of Northern India, was established in 1978 for the welfare of persons with disabilities and their families. Since disabled-friendly public transportation is very limited in the targeted areas, many persons with disabilities are not able to get rehabilitation services and participate in the community-based work.

Realizing the need, the Embassy of Japan decided to give a grant assistance of US$27,115 for the project. With this project, AADI will purchase a vehicle especially designed for easy boarding and disembarkation of persons with disabilities, which will enable them to easily commute from their home and get the benefit of rehabilitation.

Lok Sewa Samiti was established in 1979 for the socio-economic development of the rural poor and women empowerment in mainly Ajmer District, Rajasthan. The targeted villages have acute shortage of water, especially safe and clean drinking water. Women and children have to walk 2-5 kms. to fetch drinking water, which has made their lives miserable. To solve this problem, the organisation is planning a project for installing 63 hand pumps in the selected areas, which will provide sufficient and clean drinking water to the unprivileged villagers.

Realizing the need, the Embassy of Japan decided to give a grant assistance of US$82,283 for the project. With this project, around 30,000 families in 83 villages will be able to get safe and clean water.

Rajasthan Bal Kalyan Samiti was formed in 1981 with the objective of promoting education and natural resources management for the rural disadvantaged communities in areas of Rajasthan. In the targeted area of Jahdor Block in Udaipur District, Rajasthan, tribal communities reside in hilly areas and the girl children are not able to get basic education due to low status of girls and long distance of government school. Presently, the organisation is running a primary school with hostel for tribal girls, in a building that is more than 100 years old and does not have sufficient capacity to meet the ever-growing number of girls seeking education opportunities.

To create a safer and more conducive educational environment, the organisation decided to establish a new primary education school with hostel facility, and requested financial assistance from the Embassy of Japan for that. To augment the efforts of the organisation in providing primary education opportunity for about 200 tribal girls and hostels for about 100 tribal girls living in the remote hilly villages annually, the Embassy of Japan decided to grant them a sum of US$52,548 for constructing the education complex.

The Signing Ceremony to formalize the arrangements is scheduled to take place at 1600 hrs. on Monday, 16 January 2006, at the Embassy of Japan, by Ambassador Yasukuni Enoki and the respective representatives of the above NGOs.

The scheme of "Grant Assistance for Grassroots Projects" was introduced by the Government of Japan in 1989, to provide timely assistance directly to the activities of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) promoting welfare of the people in developing countries. Projects eligible for the grant assistance include such fields as primary healthcare, primary education, care of the handicapped people, poverty alleviation, enhancing status of women, public welfare, environment protection, etc. The Embassy of Japan and the Consulates General of Japan in Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai are in charge of this scheme in their respective regions.

For further information, please contact Mr. Yasushi Furukawa, First Secretary, Embassy of Japan, Telephone No.2687-6564.