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Japan's International Cooperation on Information and Communications Technology (IT)

- Primarily about the implementation situation of Japan's Comprehensive Cooperation Package to Address the International Digital Divide -

August 2001

1. Dispatch of Missions

(1) Policy Dialogue Missions

Purpose:

To explain the purport of the Comprehensive Cooperation Package, to help formulate concrete projects, and to hear major challenges in each country
First Mission: October-November 2000: the Philippines, Thailand and Cambodia
Second Mission: January 2001: Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam, and Malaysia
Third Mission: June 2001: South Africa and Tunisia

(2) Dispatch of Study Team by Executing Agency

  • Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) (dispatch of a project formulation study team to the following countries) Jordan, Thailand, Cambodia, The Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Laos, Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Nepal.
  • Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) (loan aid) Project finding studies in the Philippines, Thailand and Malaysia.

2. IT Cooperation (budget basis) (examples)

The Comprehensive Cooperation Package will be implemented within the various existing frameworks by giving priority to IT-related projects; however, supplementary budgets for FY2000 and the FY2001 budget appropriate the necessary money for the following projects specializing in IT cooperation (Projects are in the FY2001 budget, unless otherwise specified).

  • J-NET (IT Center): 1.5 billion yen in total for the FY2000 supplementary budget and the FY2001 budget
    The core centers set up in Tokyo and Okinawa will be connected with satellite centers at human resource building bases in developing countries via technologies such as satellite communications, and timely flexible technical cooperation and policy advice will be offered through distance training and other opportunities. (see 3. (4) for details)
  • Grant Aid for IT projects: 6.5 billion yen
    Construction of telecommunication infrastructure, facilities for remote education and telemedicine, and disaster prevention/management systems as well as the provision of necessary equipment and materials are implemented through this budget.
  • Pilot experiment on global distance training: Approximately 200 million yen
  • Research and study on rural area telecommunication systems: 25 million yen
  • Promotion of joint research on Info-communications in Asia: 30 million yen
  • Development of an Internet distance education system (Virtual University System): FY2000 supplementary budget - 370 million yen
  • Construction of the comprehensive support network system for teaching Japanese as a foreign language: Approximately 77 million yen
    The construction of a comprehensive network system to disseminatecollected information related to Japanese language educational materials and others via the Internet will be promoted.
  • Promotion of international coordination and cooperation in higher distance education: Approximately 15 million yen
    Educational coordination and cooperation between the University of the Air and related organizations will be promoted.
  • Support for IT human resource building: 100 million yen
    Trainers' training programs to help ordinary workers in developing countries acquire IT-related knowledge and skills will be provided.
  • Computerization human resource development: 510 million yen
    In order to develop the ability of IT engineers, providing Asian countries with samples and know-how of IT engineer examination in Japan and implementing some training course for IT engineers in Asia.
  • Projects to establish an Asian common infrastructure for electronic commerce and other commerce related activities: 450 million yen
  • International verification projects for IT industries: FY2000 supplementary budget - 900 million yen
    Support for a business model development in Asia

(Hereinafter, Contributions to International Organizations)

  • United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
    IT Fund (Newly established): US$5 million (approximately 540 million yen) planned
  • International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
    Support for ITU activities to bridge the digital divide - approximately 30 million yen planned Support for ITU activities for the establishment of a global digital society - approximately 58 million yen planned
  • Asia-Pacific Telecommuting (APT)
    Special contributions for the intraregional dissemination of IT: FY2001 - US$1.4 million (including US$500,000 newly earmarked) (approximately 150 million yen) planned
  • Asian Development Bank (ADB)
    Japan Fund for Information and Communication Technology (established in July 2001): Approximately 1.27 billion yen
  • The World Bank
    Information for Development Program (InfoDev) Contributions: 856 million yen planned Development Gateway Contributions: 535 million yen planned
  • Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)
    IT-related contributions: Approximately 158 million yen planned
  • European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
    IT-related contributions: Approximately 74 million yen planned
  • United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

    The Japanese Funds-in-Trust for the Promotion of Effective Use of ICT in Education (newly established): Approximately 170 million yen planned The fund is to provide training programs for school teachers and other professionals and aims to help improve the quality of education by taking advantage of ICT.

3. IT Cooperation (achievement basis) (FY2000) (some projects include a part planned for FY2001)

(1) Intellectual Contribution to Policy and Institution-building

  1. Policy Support by the Dispatch of JICA Experts
    (Examples)
    • Indonesia: assistance for the formation of IT policies
    • The Philippines: assistance for an information management system
  2. Development Survey - three projects (from FY2000)
    (Examples)
    • Formulation of telecommunication network build-up plan (Ethiopia)

(2) Human Resources Development

  1. Technical Cooperation
    1. Dispatch of Experts: Approximately 60 personnel
      (Cover a broad range of fields such as communication/information systems and multimedia development)
    2. Training
      • JICA Group Training Courses: approximately 400 trainees, Individual Training Courses: 80 trainees (approximately 480 trainees in total)
      • JICA Third Country and In-Country Training Programs: 14 courses
      • Other training (IT Training Program for Youth in Caribbean Countries): 14 trainees
      • Training programs sponsored by the Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications: 77 trainees in total
    3. Dispatch and Other Activities
      • Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers programs and Senior Volunteers programs: approximately 300 personnel in total
    4. Project-type Technical Cooperation: 9 projects
      (Examples)
      • Research Center for Communications and Information Technology of King Mongkut's Institute of Technology at Ladkrabang in Thailand
      • Polish-Japanese Institute of Information Technology
      • Telecommunication Training Improvement Program in Vietnam
  2. Conferences hosted
    (Examples)
    • IT and Development Cooperation (Co-hosted by Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Finance, UNDP and the World Bank)
    • APT Asia-Pacific Summit on the Information Society
    • First Meeting of the Digital Opportunity Taskforce (DOT Force)
    • Seminar on Information Technology for Development in the Pacific
    • Millennium Forum - Voice of Asia "21st Century Asia and the IT Revolution"
    • Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Seminar on the Digital Opportunity
    • East Asia IT Cooperation Conference (Planned for FY2001)
    • Japan-India IT Summit, Japan-India IT Eminent Persons Meeting (Both planned for FY2001)
  3. Projects
    (Examples)
    • Southeast Asia Engineering Education Development Network (SEED-Net) (Connecting relevant universities by IT)
    • Establishment of Human Resource Cooperation Centers (Mongolia, Vietnam, Laos)
    • Establishment of Global Development Learning Network Center in Jordan (in coordination with the World Bank): Approximately US$290,000
    • Pacific IT Promotion Project: US$1 million (contribution to UNDP)
    • IT-related assistance to CARICOM countries: Approximately US$1.4 million (contribution to UNDP and UNESCO)
    • Support for United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Trade Point Programme: US$350,000 (contribution to UNDP)
    • e-TICAD (Tokyo International Conference on African Development) Project: US$1.5 million (contribution to UNDP)
    • DOT Force administrative costs: US$750,000 (contribution to UNDP)
    • IT-related projects by the ASEAN Promotion Centre on Trade, Investment and Tourism: Approximately US$475,000 (contribution to the center)
    • United Nations Information Technology Service (UNITeS): US$490,000 (contribution to United Nations Volunteers (UNV))
    • IT and human resource development support for the Government of Bhutan: US$310,000 (contribution to UNV) (Hereinafter, Planned for FY2001)
    • IT programs to support private sector development in the Greater Mekong Sub-region: Approximately US$560,000 (contribution to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP))
    • Project to facilitate trade and investment in the Pacific Island Countries through the effective use of IT: US$130,000 (contribution to ESCAP)

(3) Building IT Infrastructure and Networking

  1. Loan Aid (15 projects)
    (Examples)
    • People's Republic of China/Liaoning Television and Radio Infrastructure Improvement Project
    • Indonesia/Institutional and Human Resources Development for IT-related Customs Services Improvement Project
    • India/Delhi Mass Rapid Transport System Project (Phase II)
    • Tunisia/Metropolitan Railway Electrification Project
  2. Grant Aid (3 projects)
    (Examples)
    • Angola/ the Project for Rehabilitation of Telephone Network in Luanda (Phase II)
    • The Philippines/ the Project for Rehabilitation of the Flood Control Operation and Warning System in Metro Manila
  3. Other Official Flow (OOF) - 20 projects (as of the end of June 2001)
    (Ministry of Finance)
    1. Export Finance (6 projects)
      (Examples)
      • Provision of Buyer's Credit to 1st Silicon (Malaysian Corporation) for its project on building a water fabrication plant for semiconductors
      • Provision of a Bank Loan to Bank Melli Iran for its project to supply line equipment and a multiplex and supervisory system
    2. Investment Finance (13 projects)
      (Examples)
      • Loan to a Philippine enterprise, established by a Japanese corporation, for its business on production and sales of electronic components such as integrated circuits and other related products
      • Loan to an Indonesian enterprise, established by a Japanese corporation, for its business on production and sales of semiconductor products which are used for PCs and cellular phones
    3. Untied Loan (one project)
      • Loan to TELEMAR (Brazilian Enterprise), founded in the wake of the divestiture and privatization of TELEBRAS (a state-owned enterprise for communication), for its business to expand fixed telecommunications networks in northern, northeastern and southeastern regions of Brazil (installation of communications cables, construction of exchanges and bases as well as data centers, etc.)

(4) Promoting the Utilization of IT in Development Assistance

(Examples of Projects)

  1. J-NET
    This system aims at extending timely and flexible technical cooperation and policy advice to the developing countries, by linking the core centers in Tokyo and Okinawa and satellite centers to be set up at human resource building bases in developing countries through technologies such as satellite communications. It is planned that satellite centers will be established in Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines in FY2001. Contents and materials for distance training will also be prepared.
  2. Asia-Pacific Region International Humanitarian Assistance Centre (e-Centre) Project: Approximately US$1.9 million (contribution to United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) through UN Trust Fund for Human Security)

    This center, established within the UNHCR Regional Office for Japan and the Republic of Korea, offers training for emergency humanitarian assistance to UN staffs, NGOs' members and government officials in the Asia-Pacific region, utilizing the Internet and existing training facilities, for the purpose of reinforcing human resource for emergency preparedness.
  3. Establishment of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) ReliefWeb Office in Kobe: Approximately US$0.35 million (contribution to OCHA through UN Trust Fund for Human Security)

    The ReliefWeb OCHA is a system to deliver information on natural disasters or conflicts promptly to donor countries, NGOs, and other organizations through its website on the Internet when such a humanitarian crisis occurs. The new OCHA ReliefWeb Office was established in Kobe.
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