Praia, Cape Verde, 30 March – Japan has provides some 1.11 billion Cape Verdean escudos to support projects for production and distribution of drinking water and food aid in Cape vErde, a statement issued Friday in Praia announced.

In the statement, the Cape Verdean Foreign Affairs Ministry said that the deals were signed Friday in Dakar by Cape Verdean ambassador to Senegal, Raul Barbosa and Japanese ambassador to Senegal, Takashi Saito.

One of the agreements is related to the project for “Supply of Water to Rural Areas of the Island of Santiago,” expected to cost 767 million Cape Verdean escudos and aims to improve the quality of life and sanitary environment of the populations of 24 rural areas of the Island of Santiago, by installing systems for production and distribution of drinking water.

The other agreement, which includes providing funding of 342 million Cape Verdean escudos, is related to food aid programmes.

The Japanese financial aid, the Foreign Affairs Ministry statement said, “has reflected very positively,” on the development of Cape Verde, with direct impact on the balance of payments.

Japanese aid to Cape Verde goes back to the archipelago’s independence in 1975 and, as well as providing food aid every year, it has channeled non-repayable funds to crucial sectors for combating social exclusion and poverty.

The projects funded by Tokyo have mainly covered agriculture, fishing, telecommunications, sport, water supply, health, staff training, transport and infrastructures. (macauhub)