Statement by Mr. NOKE Masaki, Ambassador of Japan to Egypt, on the occasion of the signature of a new grant assistance as part of Japan’s cooperation to Egypt in the fight against COVID-19
2020/10/21
1 Signing a New Grant Assistance
First and foremost, I would like to pay my deepest respect to the people and the Government of Egypt for their tireless efforts to address the challenges under COVID-19, extending special tribute to the doctors and healthcare workers who are at the forefront of this long combat.
I am honored and pleased to express the solidarity of the people and the Government of Japan towards the Egyptian friends by signing and exchanging notes today, October 21st, 2020, with H.E. Dr. Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of International Cooperation of Egypt, on a grant assistance of 1 billion yen (equivalent to approximately 9.5 million US dollars) for the procurement of medical equipment.
From now, the Government of Egypt will identify necessary medical devices from items such as CT scanners, X-ray machines and Electrocardiograms, the Egyptian Ministry of Health and Population and the Government of Japan will consult and coordinate for the final selection of medical devices, and those devices will be provided to hospitals designated to deal with COVID-19 cases.
I hope this will contribute to enhancing the Egyptian measures for dealing with COVID-19, as well as the medical and health care system in Egypt.
This gift from the people of Japan is part of Japan’s cooperation with Egypt in the context of COVID-19, in addition to the recent contributions through UNICEF (1.6 million US dollars, for the protection of the vulnerable population including women and children through infection prevention as well as education support) and UNDP (2.7 million US dollars, for the support for micro, small and medium enterprises and promotion of human rights).
2 Principle of “ Human Security” and Partnership for UHC
The spread of the coronavirus is a “human security crisis,” posing a threat to the lives, livelihoods and dignity of people across the globe.
The guiding principle for the whole international community to overcome this crisis should be “leave no one behind,” one of the core ideas of the SDGs Agenda 2030, and also the concept of “human security,” which focuses on the protection and empowerment of individuals.
We think it is essential to set the goal of “leaving no one’s health behind” and work towards achieving universal health coverage (UHC). In this sense, Egypt and Japan are strong partners.
If Japan has been successful in keeping low mortality rate from COVID-19, it is thanks to its strong health systems, including its national health insurance system, and we are extending international cooperation to share our experience.
Egypt has also been taking commendable steps in this field. The Universal Health Insurance (UHI) Law came into force in July 2019, and we are already witnessing energetic implementation efforts. Japan is standing by Egypt by exercising technical cooperation aimed at improving management capacity and quality of public hospitals and helping them to be certified with the new regulation of the UHI Law.
These actions are as a result of our long history of cooperation in the health sector, exemplified by the construction of Cairo University Specialized Pediatric Hospital, called “Japanese hospital,” and in line with “Japan-Egypt Cooperation Initiative in Health Care Sector,” announced on the occasion of the visit by H.E. President El Sisi to Japan in 2016.
Japan will continue to work closely with Egypt in the health sector under the principles of “human security” and SDGs, and overcome together this crisis of the century.
NOKE Masaki
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Egypt
First and foremost, I would like to pay my deepest respect to the people and the Government of Egypt for their tireless efforts to address the challenges under COVID-19, extending special tribute to the doctors and healthcare workers who are at the forefront of this long combat.
I am honored and pleased to express the solidarity of the people and the Government of Japan towards the Egyptian friends by signing and exchanging notes today, October 21st, 2020, with H.E. Dr. Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of International Cooperation of Egypt, on a grant assistance of 1 billion yen (equivalent to approximately 9.5 million US dollars) for the procurement of medical equipment.
From now, the Government of Egypt will identify necessary medical devices from items such as CT scanners, X-ray machines and Electrocardiograms, the Egyptian Ministry of Health and Population and the Government of Japan will consult and coordinate for the final selection of medical devices, and those devices will be provided to hospitals designated to deal with COVID-19 cases.
I hope this will contribute to enhancing the Egyptian measures for dealing with COVID-19, as well as the medical and health care system in Egypt.
This gift from the people of Japan is part of Japan’s cooperation with Egypt in the context of COVID-19, in addition to the recent contributions through UNICEF (1.6 million US dollars, for the protection of the vulnerable population including women and children through infection prevention as well as education support) and UNDP (2.7 million US dollars, for the support for micro, small and medium enterprises and promotion of human rights).
2 Principle of “ Human Security” and Partnership for UHC
The spread of the coronavirus is a “human security crisis,” posing a threat to the lives, livelihoods and dignity of people across the globe.
The guiding principle for the whole international community to overcome this crisis should be “leave no one behind,” one of the core ideas of the SDGs Agenda 2030, and also the concept of “human security,” which focuses on the protection and empowerment of individuals.
We think it is essential to set the goal of “leaving no one’s health behind” and work towards achieving universal health coverage (UHC). In this sense, Egypt and Japan are strong partners.
If Japan has been successful in keeping low mortality rate from COVID-19, it is thanks to its strong health systems, including its national health insurance system, and we are extending international cooperation to share our experience.
Egypt has also been taking commendable steps in this field. The Universal Health Insurance (UHI) Law came into force in July 2019, and we are already witnessing energetic implementation efforts. Japan is standing by Egypt by exercising technical cooperation aimed at improving management capacity and quality of public hospitals and helping them to be certified with the new regulation of the UHI Law.
These actions are as a result of our long history of cooperation in the health sector, exemplified by the construction of Cairo University Specialized Pediatric Hospital, called “Japanese hospital,” and in line with “Japan-Egypt Cooperation Initiative in Health Care Sector,” announced on the occasion of the visit by H.E. President El Sisi to Japan in 2016.
Japan will continue to work closely with Egypt in the health sector under the principles of “human security” and SDGs, and overcome together this crisis of the century.
NOKE Masaki
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Egypt