KATHMANDU, July 22: Government of Japan has agreed to provide a grant assistance of Japanese Yen (JPY) 628 million (equivalent to approximately Rs 639.9 million) to Nepal under the Project for Human Resource Development Scholarship (JDS) first and second phase and JPY 300 million (equivalent to approximately Rs 305.7 million) for the School Sector Development Programme (SSDP) respectively.
Separate agreements to this effect were signed and exchanged at the Ministry of Finance today.
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Ambassador of Japan to Nepal, Mr. Masamichi Saigo and Secretary at the Ministry of Finance, Dr. Rajan Khanal, signed the agreement on behalf of their respective government.
The JDS program has started in Nepal since 2015 with objectives of supporting human resources development in the public sector by providing the opportunity to pursue higher education in the renowned Japanese Universities with a full scholarship. The program is popular in Nepal and highly demanded.
According to the Finance Ministry press release, the JDS fellows are expected to return to Nepal after completion of the study and contribute to the socio-economic development. Besides, the JDS fellows are expected to contribute to strengthening the partnership between the two countries through institutional and individual network development.
Likewise, SSDP is a continuation of already completed School Sector Reform Program led by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. It aims at improving quality, spurring equitable access and efficiency of basic and secondary education with the strengthened institutional capacity of Government schools. It will focus on textbook distribution, student scholarships, teachers' management, and development. This program is being implemented under the Sector Wide Approach (SWAP). Harmonization and coordination under Joint Financing Arrangement (JFA) with other development partners is a unique feature of this program which is in line with the government's International Development Cooperation Mobilization Policy. This is the seven years period program started in Fiscal Year 2019/20.
The Government of Nepal has expressed its appreciation to the Government of Japan for this assistance and its continued support to the socio-economic development of Nepal.
