Japan donates 4.5 million dollars to Colombia to support Venezuelan immigrants
According to a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Colombia, the Japanese government has made a donation of 4.5 million dollars to support Colombia's efforts in response to the arrival of Venezuelan immigrants.
The donation was received by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Colombia, Luz Stella Jara; the UNHCR representative, Jozef Merkx, and the head of mission of the International Organization for Migration in Colombia, Ana Eugenia Durán.
The money will be used to attend to the humanitarian needs of refugees and immigrants from Venezuela, as well as communities affected by the migratory influx that has exceeded all planned limits.
The Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Luz Stella Jara Portilla, expressed the following in the statement: "The government of Japan has once again demonstrated its international solidarity and its commitment to the Colombian government and the Colombian people, so thank you very much."
For his part, the Japanese ambassador to Colombia, Keiichiro Morishita, recognized the Colombian policy of "open arms" to the massive immigration of Venezuelans to the country.
In this sense, he declared the following: “Japan, with its commitment and respect for human rights and evoking its friendship of more than 110 years with Colombia, responds today to the call for international cooperation to support the work that the Agency of Refugees of the United Nations and the International Organization for Migration in the country”.
The available resources will be allocated to Venezuelan immigrants, Colombian returnees and host communities in the departments of Norte de Santander, Arauca, Cesar and La Guajira, bordering Venezuela; as well as in Atlántico, Bolívar, Putumayo, Antioquia and Cundinamarca.
The purpose of the donation is to strengthen humanitarian assistance in areas such as "temporary provision, psychosocial support, humanitarian transportation and strengthening the provision of institutional health services", it will also facilitate "access to documentation and refugee applications".