Cairo, March 24, 2015

Grassroots Assistance

Japan supports Civil Monitoring of Parliamentary Elections

On Sunday March 22nd 2015, Mr. Takehiro Kagawa, Ambassador of Japan to Egypt, and Mr. Ehab Bahi, Chairperson of the Egyptian Association for Supporting Democratic Development (EASD) signed a grant assistance contract for Japanese Grant Assistance for Grass-Roots Projects.

The grant amounting to US$ 86,328 is extended by the Government of Japan for the purpose of supporting the training of volunteer monitors of the upcoming parliamentary elections and providing the assistance for their monitoring activities on the polling days.

In the Japan-Egypt Joint Statement on January 18th 2015, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe reaffirmed Japan’s continued support to Egypt’s completion of the implementation of the Road Map, by holding the parliamentary elections. This grant is in line with the Government of Japan’s policy expressed in the Joint Statement.

This grant is extended under the Japanese Government’s Assistance Scheme for Grassroots and Human Security Projects, which gives support to Non-profitable Organizations and NGOs. This scheme was launched in Egypt in 1994, and around 150 projects have been implemented to date, totaling about US$ 7 million.