JAKARTA GLOBE



 

Japan has just unveiled another round of grants dedicated to Indonesian grassroots communities, totaling nearly 25.1 million yen or $167,066 this time.

About $63,629 of that cash will go into constructing school buildings for a community learning center in Lamahara, East Flores. Japan will also bankroll around $43,324 to purchase medical equipment for the Marianum Haliulik Catholic Hospital in East Nusa Tenggara.

Tokyo has earmarked $60,113 to construct a building for Al-Hidayah Islamic School in a Lampung village. Japanese Embassy’s Chargé d’Affaires ad interim Myochin Mitsuru said Thursday that the recipient groups would receive the grant after the targeted construction and procurement are complete. 

“Japan puts great importance on human security. [Making sure] that people live with dignity, so education and healthcare are very important, in particular for the people who live in the countryside. … That’s why we are focusing on these sectors,” Mitsuru told the press.

In recent years, Japan has rolled out a series of grassroots grants for Indonesians, which typically target small-scale community projects in the country’s rural areas. Indonesia is an archipelagic country, but its development and growth have remained Java-centric. 

The Jakarta Globe asked Mitsuru whether the latest fund injection could be a curtain-raiser to an upcoming meeting between President Prabowo Subianto and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

According to Mitsuru, Takaichi’s predecessor, Shigeru Ishiba, had already travelled to Jakarta in January 2025. And now Japan wants Prabowo to make a return visit soon.

“Hopefully, our leaders can meet in person bilaterally. … We hope Prabowo can visit Tokyo. That would be great. But I cannot say exactly when. We sincerely hope that it will take place soon,” Mitsuru said.