Japan's tsunami-damaged Iwate Governor thanks Kuwait's support

Governor of Japan's Iwate Prefecture Takuya Tasso renewed gratitude to His Highness the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and the Kuwaiti people for their heart-warming encouragement and continuous support in the aftermath of the 2011 earthquake-tsunami disaster. Tasso made this remark to Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) on the occasion of an unveiling ceremony of Kuwait-Japan friendship memorial plate at a brand-new mental health care center for children who suffered psychological damage from the twin disasters that devastated the country's northeastern region two years ago. Kuwaiti Ambassador to Japan Abdulrahman Al-Otaibi also attended the ceremony held in the northeastern city of Morioka, where he pledged Kuwait's continued support to Japan, based on the true friendship that binds the two countries for more than five decades. The 800-sq meter Iwate Children Care Center was built at the premises of Iwate Medical University with the assistance of Kuwait's USD two million fund, which His Highness the Amir offered during his state visit to Japan in March last year. In addition, Kuwait donated five million barrels of crude oil in 2011, worth USD 500 million, of which value was distributed through the Japanese Red Cross Society to the three hardest-hit prefectures, including USD 105 million to Iwate. The magnitude 9.0-quake and ensuing tsunami left nearly 19,000 people dead or missing in northeastern Japan, with about 6,000 victims in Iwate alone. "Kuwait's donations have yielded direct benefits to the people and the communities. Last month, the tsunami-damaged local railway resumed its operations thanks to Kuwaiti financial assistance, which was greatly appreciated by the local people. This time, Kuwait offered support looking after emotion of individuals," he said. Calling 2013 "Year of Accelerating the Reconstruction," the governor affirmed that Iwate is steadily advancing along the path of reconstruction. Besides the restoration of the railway and the establishment of the mental health care center for affected children, Kuwait's donations have been earmarked for various major rebuilding projects in Iwate Prefecture, such as financial assistance for survivors, support for education, rehabilitation of fishery and aid to disaster-hit small- and medium-sized enterprises. It also plans to promote the introduction of solar power generation in affected houses in fiscal 2013, according to the local government.