Japan offers COVID-19 fund through UNICEF

The JAPANESE government has pledged P190 million to the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) to support the Philippine’s coronavirus vaccination program.

In a statement, the UNICEF said the funding would  provide 147 health facilities in the country with vaccine cold rooms and solar refrigerators and 2,000 health facilities with temperature monitoring devices.

The amount will also help train more than 50 technicians to operate and maintain the facilities and equip 300 health staff with skills for their monitoring and use.

“The costs of the pandemic for children are immediate and, if unaddressed, may persist throughout their lives,” UNICEF Representative Oyunsaikhan Dendevnorov said in the statement.

“The availability and equitable distribution of vaccines is critical for putting an end to this global pandemic,” he added. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas