Evaluation on Japan’s Education Cooperation Policy

Chief Evaluator	Dr. ISHIDA Yoko Professor/Director, Center for the Study of International Cooperation in Education, Hiroshima University
Advisor	Dr. KURODA Kazuo Professor/Dean, Graduate School of Asia-Pacific Studies, Waseda University
Consultant	International Development Center of Japan Inc.
Evaluation Period	FY2015 to FY2020
Period of the Evaluation Study	September 2021 to March 2022
Field Survey Country	El Salvador, Madagascar (online survey)

Background, Objectives, and Scope of the Evaluation

Education cooperation has been positioned as one of the priority areas in Japan’s development cooperation. Thus, the Government of Japan formulated the “Learning Strategy for Peace and Growth,” as a sectoral development policy in education that was guided by the “Development Cooperation Charter” formulated in 2015. The policy stipulates that “a third-party evaluation of this policy should be carried out at an appropriate time in order to utilize the results for planning and implementing a future education cooperation policy, as well as to achieve accountability to the public.” Since it has been six years since the implementation of the education cooperation policy, this evaluation was carried out for this purpose.

Summary of Evaluation Results

● Development Viewpoints

(1) Relevance of Policies

The policy has been positioned as an education development policy of the Development Cooperation Charter approved by the Cabinet in February 2015. It was formulated based on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 4, which has set forth efforts to address the educational challenges faced by partner countries. The policy has also incorporated areas of comparative advantage in Japan’s education sector, and has been consistent with the needs of partner countries owing to the fact it was developed after sufficient consultations with practitioners of education cooperation and NGOs.
(Evaluation Result: Highly Satisfactory)

(2) Effectiveness of Results

Japan’s bilateral assistance for education amounted to more than US$3.1 billion over the five years from 2015 to 2019, which was about 75% of the previous five years. However, in terms of outcomes of its cooperation, it was confirmed that Japan’s contributions to resolving educational issues and achieving educational goals in partner countries and the international community were satisfactory. Since 2020, new initiatives such as the digitization of teaching materials, and the implementation of on-line classes and training were confirmed to have begun to ensure learning continuity, although they were greatly affected by the spread of COVID-19.
(Evaluation Result: Satisfactory)

(3) Appropriateness of Processes

MOFA formulated this policy, having individually sought advice from relevant ministries, JICA, universities, international organizations, NGOs, private companies, and other stakeholders. At the implementation stage, officials from Japan’s diplomatic missions, JICA, and other organizations formed an ODA Task Force, which regularly conducts information-sharing with partner countries on the formulation of aid policies and development projects, and monitors the progress of the projects. Cooperation with other donor agencies and diverse aid modalities were also applied to meet diverse assistance needs. However, since the implementation period and targets of the policy were not set, there has been room for improvement in monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the education cooperation policy.
(Evaluation Result: Satisfactory) 

* Ratings: Highly Satisfactory; Satisfactory; Partially Satisfactory; Unsatisfactory

● Diplomatic Viewpoints

(1) Diplomatic Importance

Recognition of this policy from partner governments, other donor agencies, and Japan’s overseas establishments is not high. In contrast, the governments of partner countries are well aware of individual education projects, and appreciated that assistance is from Japan. As a result, it seems that Japan’s education cooperation has contributed not only to addressing the educational issues of the partner countries, but also to building better bilateral relations and the enhancement of Japan’s presence.

(2) Diplomatic Impact

Japan’s education cooperation has met the development needs of partner countries. The cooperation has been provided on the ground, working together with local counterparts. Therefore, the trust and expectations from those countries are high, and it can be concluded that the approaches of Japan’s cooperation have contributed to strengthening bilateral relations. For example, a head of a state personally expressed his gratitude for Japan’s cooperation in the education sector where an educational initiative named after Japan has been implemented. Another example is that there are education projects that have strengthened international and regional networks of education cooperation and led to strengthened intra-regional cooperation in regions such as ASEAN, Central America, and Africa. Thus, diplomatic spillover effects created by education cooperation are believed to have emerged.

Recommendations Based on Evaluation Results

(1) Recommendations on Policy Content of Japan’s Education Cooperation

• Prioritizing important areas of a new policy should be considered as it will likely need to provide a variety of education cooperation in line with international trends.
• The implementation period of the next education cooperation policy and its targets should be set and incorporated into the policy in order to be accountable to the public and to share information with concerned parties.
• The policy needs to include the following five points. 1. The purpose of cooperation and the target fields should be stated separately as much as possible. 2. Effectiveness of cooperation should be enhanced by maintaining and strengthening cooperation with other actors and businesses closely related to a project, leveraging the accumulated outcomes of previous cooperation, ensuring the use of trained personnel, and not only creating new mechanisms but also utilizing existing systems. 3. A monitoring system tailored to the actual conditions of the partner country should be established. 4. Long-term relationships of trust with partner countries should be established. 5. Networking approaches, cooperation with multilateral and bilateral donor agencies, a variety of assistance modalities including financial support, should be maintained to implement cooperation flexibly to meet local needs.

(2) Recommendations on Policy Formulation and Implementation Process of Japan’s Education Cooperation

• Existing forums where stakeholders such as related ministries, JICA, universities, international organizations, NGOs, and private companies can meet and discuss the formulation of an education cooperation policy in an open and transparent manner, should effectively be utilized.
• The implementation progress of this policy should be monitored by further utilizing platforms such as the “Japan International Education Cooperation Groups Meetings,” etc. In addition, a third-party evaluation of the policy implementation should be conducted at an appropriate time to draw recommendations and reflect them in a new policy. For this purpose, the policy implementation period and policy targets to be achieved need to be determined and set forth.
• Knowledge and cooperation from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) are essential in formulating, executing and evaluating projects to implement an education cooperation policy more effectively and efficiently. For example, holding periodic meetings with three parties, MOFA, MEXT, and JICA which is an ODA implementing agency, should be considered.
• As for public relations concerning the policy, Japan should take opportunities to announce this policy by Japanese leaders to the international community. ODA implementing authorities, including within MOFA, Japan’s overseas establishments, and JICA should also be continuously informed of this policy.
• Relevant information on the “diplomatic importance and impact” of education cooperation policy should be kept and collected in order to enrich evaluations in this area, during the period of an individual education project and at the time of monitoring and evaluation. The collected information should then be reported.

---

<< Previous Page　　　Next Page >>