The handover ceremonies of the three projects took place in Pwint Phyu, Pakokku and Myaing Townships on 2nd and 3rd of February 2017 respectively.

1) The Project for Construction of Sedaw Village Basic Education Branch Middle School in Pwint Phyu Township, Magway Region (US$51,201),
2) The Project for Construction of Two Schools in Pakokku Township, Magway Region (US$196,114) and
3) The Project for Construction of Ywa Thit Village Water Supply System in Myaing Township, Magway Region (US$121,720).

The handover ceremonies for 1) and 2) are to assist the two schools out of 493 flood affected ones requested by the Myanmar Government to the Japanese Government for the reconstruction and rehabilitation.

Ms. Yukiko OZEKI, Second Secretary of the Embassy of Japan, U Tun Tun, Pyitthu Hluttaw Representative of Pwint Phyu Township, U Pike Ko, Pyitthu Hluttaw Representative of Pakokku Township, Committee Chairpersons, committee members of the construction projects, and local residents attended the ceremonies.

1) Buildings of Sedaw Village Basic Education Branch Middle School were submerged by the flood occurred in July, 2015, which caused serious damages on school facilities. As the school could not afford a new building, numerous students had to study in a monastery far away from the village. In order to address this issue, the Japanese Government provided funding for construction of a single-storey Reinforced Concrete Construction (R.C.C.) school building with 3 classrooms and full furniture. The project will benefit 203 students of the school.

2) School buildings of Sone Kone Village No.14 Post Primary School became old and inappropriate conditions, students were exposed to rain and wind due to holes on the walls of the buildings. Similarly, the building of Shar Daw Village No.55 Basic Education Primary School had not been in use for long since it was too old and damaged by continuous floods. Therefore, students studied in the nearest Rural Health Center building temporary. However, it was not spacious enough and not well equipped as well.

To tackle solving these issues, the Japanese Government provided funding for the construction of a two-storey R.C.C. school building with 6 classrooms, full furniture and lavatories for Sone Kone Village No.14 Post Primary School and the construction of a one-storey R.C.C. school building with 5 classrooms, full furniture, lavatories and walkway for Shar Daw Village No.55 Basic Education Primary School. Two projects will benefit a total of 622 students of both schools and further strengthen disaster resilience in the region.

3) Since there was no sufficient amount of water available in Ywa Thit Village, people often faced difficulties in collecting water for their living, farming and livestock. To improve this situation, the Japanese Government provided fund for the construction of a water pond, 6 water tanks, pumping and distribution pipes, 10 manholes, a solar generator, fencing and a signboard. The project will benefit 735 people in Ywa Thit Village and improve water sanitation environment.

The Government of Japan has assisted 808 various grass-roots projects in Myanmar under the GGP scheme since 1993: the number consisting of 394 education projects, 198 healthcare projects, 138 public welfare and environment projects, 43 infrastructure projects and 35 other projects. It is anticipated that these assistances will further strengthen the existing friendly relations between Japan and Myanmar.