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The Ambassador of Japan to Nepal, H.E. Mr. Masamichi Saigo, signed a grant contract with Dr. Gaurishankar Lal Das, Chairperson, B. P. Eye Foundation for installing Hearing Screening Equipment for Infants.

The project is funded under the Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGP) of the Japanese Government and involves a grant of USD 82,236 (approximately NPR 9.29 million). The project will support the installation of medical equipment such as Otoscopes, Diagnostic Otoacoustic Emissions (OAEs), Clinical Tympernometer, Diagnostic Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR), Auditory Steady-State Evoked Responses (ASSR), and Loop Hearing as well as other equipment including a laptop, camera, and LED screen for the implementation of hearing screening for infants. The project will also build soundproof rooms at five medical facilities – Hospital for Children, Eye, ENT & Rehabilitation Services (CHEERS); Siddhi Memorial Hospital; Bajrabarahi Community Hospital; Changunarayan Primary Health Centre, and Bode Maternal and Child Health Clinic. At the grant signing ceremony, Ambassador Saigo said that he hoped the assistance would enhance locally available medical services and contribute towards improving the quality of life for children with hearing difficulties. This can be done by detecting hearing losses among infants early in life. B. P. Eye Foundation, established in 1991, has been managing CHEERS in Madhyapur Thimi Municipality since 2012. It has been offering medical, rehabilitation and treatment services in rural areas, and providing trainings of health care. The Embassy of Japan hopes that the project will contribute towards improving medical services in the area, particularly discovering and preventing hearing loss in the early stages of life among infants in the Kathmandu Valley. It also believes that the support will contribute towards enhancing the friendship between the peoples of Japan and Nepal.