A grassroots grant assistance project for installation of solar panels at school in Village Shewa, District Swabi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, funded by the Government of Japan, was inaugurated on March 29, 2023. The Government of Japan had provided a USD 58,928 grant (equivalent to around PKR 16.7 million) to Shewa Educated Social Workers Association (SESWA), a local NGO working in the field of education, infrastructure, and environment, for implementing this project. This is the third time for SESWA to receive financial assistance from the Government of Japan.

This time, SESWA utilized the grant to install solar panels at the school that was constructed and expanded by the past two financial supports from the Government of Japan in order to overcome the problem of frequent power outages across the whole of Pakistan in a sustainable and environmentally-friendly way.  Thanks to this project, children can now learn in classrooms with a proper illumination level as well as running fans during the hot season. At the inauguration ceremony, Mr. ITO Takeshi, Chargé d'Affaires of Japan to Pakistan  congratulated the representatives of the NGO and the community members for the successful completion of this project.

He also showed the expectation that children would get the chance to carve out their bright future and also this project would strengthen the existing friendly relationships between the people of Japan and Pakistan. The Government of Japan will continue to provide flexible and timely support to improve the social well-being of the people of Pakistan at the grassroots level in cooperation with local organizations.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-INP