Japan has now considered Nigeria qualified to benefit from its bilateral aid support it gives to developing countries, Mr. Paul Enrihri, managing director of Public Finance and Management Consulting Group has said.
In a paper he delivered at national workshop on sources and procurement of foreign finance, Mr. Paul Enrihri said that in 1980 Japan considered Nigeria as among the developing countries that do not qualify to benefit frm the aid programme.
According to him, with the increasing difficulties encountered by Nigeria in meeting her international finance obligations, Japan has considered Nigeria as one of those countries to benefit from the aid programme.
Mr. Enrihri said Japan’s total overseas development aid for 1984 amounted to $4.32 billion which is expected to double by year 1992.
Most state governments in Nigeria are not aware of these aid facility to enable them take advantage of it, he added. Meanwhile, the school of Oceanography, the Nigeria Railway has already benefitted from the aid programme.
Explaining the modalities of the aid, he said that Japan’s support to developing countries usually comes in two forms, the first and most comprehensive is the direct aid through bilateral aid programme, the second being that through support to multilateral agencies.
Continuing Mr. Enrihri said that Japan’s financial assistance to developing countries do no require any repayment.
The grant aid, according to him, 20 usually in form of funds supply which do not usually include payment in kind such as equipment or materials produced.
