Kathmandu, Feb 1: Japan handed medical equipment for diabetic retinopathy patients to Kirtipur Eye Hospital in Kathmandu on Wednesday. The handover ceremony was attended Japan’s ambassador to Nepal, Kikuta Yutaka, the Embassy of Japan in Kathmandu said.
The medical equipment has been installed with the support of USD 154,100 (approximately NPR 18.35 million) under the Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGP) of the Government of Japan, the Embassy said.
On this occasion, ambassador Kikuta congratulated and appreciated the efforts of everyone involved in the project. As he said, without proper medical equipment, patients are not able to be diagnosed and treated as needed. He expressed his belief that people suffering from diabetic retinopathy, one of the most pressing diseases in Nepal’s modern society, would be given receive better medical services with the medical equipment granted by the project.
Ambassador Kikuta said that 2022 was the 120th year since Nepal dispatched its first eight students to Japan for their study. He expressed his pleasure to celebrate the completion of the project in February 2023 in the same spirit of the
wonderful anniversary. He added that he hoped the results of this project would contribute greatly to the development of healthcare in Nepal and further to the exchange between the two countries.
Kirtipur Eye Hospital was established in 2017 by Nepal Netra Jyoti Sangh (NNJS), a pioneer in eye care services for 45 years, and which serves more than 20,000 patients annually, including 2,400 with diabetic retinopathy. The Embassy
believes that the support will both assist patients attending the hospital, and further heighten the friendship between the peoples of Japan and Nepal.
GGP was established to implement projects directly benefiting people at the grassroots level for community socio-economic development. Since 1991, over 200 GGP projects have been implemented in Nepal.
