As the challenge of reconstruction begins in the Philippines after the devastation of Typhoon Haiyan, it is imperative that Japan helps its neighbor. The Philippines was one of the most important contributors to the relief effort after the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami in March 2011, and now Japan has the chance to return the favor.
Japan has much to offer the Philippines. Already, Japan has sent medical workers, disaster relief experts and Ground Self-Defense Force members. However, Japan should help longer than for the immediate necessities over the next few weeks. It is important that reconstruction be durable and substantial. The Philippines, like Japan, will remain vulnerable to typhoons. However, the Geneva-based Internal Displacement Monitoring Center estimated that a typhoon of the same intensity would have 17 times less destruction if it were to hit Japan.
The infrastructure in the Philippines is one of the major obstacles to safety. Japan can help with the construction of roads and airports in remote areas, and help to provide housing. Thousands still remain homeless, a recurrent problem. In 2011, for example, the year of the Great East Japan disasters, typhoons forced three times as many Filipinos from their homes as did the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis in Japan.