Japan orders demining equipment from Ukrainian companies to be transferred to the State Emergency Service

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has ordered humanitarian demining equipment from Ukrainian manufacturers to be handed over to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine as part of a long-term partnership.

‘I am grateful to our partners for not only supporting our humanitarian demining efforts, but also helping our economy by purchasing Ukrainian demining equipment and machinery. On the one hand, this will allow us to return potentially contaminated land to use faster, and on the other hand, Ukrainian enterprises will receive additional resources, thereby creating jobs and paying taxes and supporting our budget,' said Yuliia Svyrydenko, First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine and Minister of Economy of Ukraine.

The Japanese agency ordered the production of 12 minibuses from the Ukrainian company Cherkasy Bus. The vehicles are to be delivered to the State Emergency Service in November this year.

JICA also ordered the production of eight trailers for transporting demining vehicles. The State Emergency Service received four of these trucks in July, and four more are scheduled for delivery in September.

The ordered equipment is part of a broader package of support from JICA to the SES in the framework of long-term cooperation. Procurement of demining equipment and machinery from Ukrainian manufacturers is carried out under the Made in Ukraine initiative within the Sectoral Working Group.

Japan is a member of the Sectoral Working Group on Humanitarian Demining under the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, while Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Ukraine Matsuda Kuninori co-chairs the group.

Japan is one of Ukraine's key partners in humanitarian demining. The amount of funding for mine action projects in Ukraine is over USD 70 million. These funds are mainly used to purchase equipment and machinery and build the capacity of the mine action sector in Ukraine. In particular, in July, Japan donated four demining vehicles to the SES.

‘Japan will continue to seek the best possible combination of ‘Made in Japan’ and ‘Made in Ukraine’ formats to ensure that only the highest quality equipment and vehicles are transferred to Ukraine. Japan will support and work with Ukraine and its people until the last mine is cleared and all Ukrainians can walk freely without fear of explosives,’ said Ambassador Kuninori Matsuda.

It is worth reminding that humanitarian demining is coordinated by Yuliia Svyrydenko, First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine and Minister of Economy of Ukraine. The Ministry of Economy of Ukraine ensures the interaction of central executive authorities on mine action in terms of humanitarian demining.