On Friday, January 29, 2010, a signing ceremony will take place at the Embassy of Japan at 11:30 a.m. between Mr. Masayuki Takashima, Charge d’Affaires and Ms. Ngerblunt Arurang, Principal of Peleliu Elementary School.The ceremony will make official the Government of Japan’s enduring commitment to assist the Republic of Palau by funding “The Project for Peleliu Elementary School Restroom Facilities” for the school.
The Government of Japan has been offering financial assistance to developing countries through GGP scheme, by directly funding the non-governmental organizations. GGP has been available in the Republic of Palau since 1999 and has funded numerous projects to benefit the locals. The focus areas of GGP in the Republic of Palau are primary education, primary health and environmental conservation. According to Mr. Takashima, Chargé d’Affaires, “This project is a prime example of our friendly relations and common concern for human resource development through the improvement of educational facilities.”
Established in 1954, the school has been providing quality education to the youth of Peleliu. This year the school has an enrollment of 87 students, 19 school staff including one JICA Volunteer and one Peace Corp Volunteer. In order to improve the health and hygiene situation for the students and staff, this project will fund the following: the renovation of the boys and girls restroom facilities (flush and non-flush toilets), the construction of boys and girls shower rooms, and the construction of a roofed walkway connecting the classrooms to the restrooms. These improvements will allow the students to use hygienic restrooms in times of water shortage, as well as prevent the students from getting wet in bad weather when walking to the restrooms from their classrooms.According to Principal Arurang, the toilet facilities are over 10 years old and at times, the water pressure of Peleliu would be too low rendering the flush toilets un-usable.At such times, schools may be cancelled due to health concerns for the students.However, with the renovation of the non-flush toilets, the students can continue their studies without any concerns.
For more information regarding GGP, please contact Ms. Naoko Hayashi, GGP Coordinator at the Embassy of Japan in the Republic of Palau at 488-6455/56.
