Sectoral Development Policy

In recent years, humanitarian crises around the world have become increasingly protracted and complexed. Consequently, conflict prevention, as well as emergency humanitarian assistance and support for reconstruction and development in their aftermath in developing countries, are becoming ever more important. Based on the concept of "human security," Japan places importance on taking action to protect individuals and strengthen their capabilities at every stage, from during the conflict to the reconstruction and development. In the Development Cooperation Charter, human security is also positioned as the guiding principle of Japan’s development cooperation and peacebuilding as one of the priority issues. This is based on the idea that Japan's security and prosperity depend on the peace and stability of the whole world, and that it is important to contribute to building peace through the use of ODA, even with regard to conflicts in geographically distant regions. From the perspective that peace, stability, and security are prerequisites for state-building and development, Japan places importance on providing seamless support, from emergency humanitarian assistance during and immediately after a conflict, to assistance for restoration, reconstruction, and development.

Development Cooperation Charter (February, 2015)

I. Philosophy Objectives, Policies, and Priorities

• (1) Objectives of Development Cooperation
  Bearing in mind the expectations of the international community, Japan, as a responsible major player in the world, will contribute more actively and exert strong leadership in addressing challenges facing the international community - especially development challenges and humanitarian concerns. Doing so is of great significance from the perspective of solidifying the confidence that the international community has in Japan.
  In today’s international community, it is no longer possible for any nation to secure peace and prosperity by itself. Under such circumstances, the path Japan should take to continue developing a prosperous and peaceful society lies in a serious effort to tackle various global challenges in cooperation with the international community, including developing countries, for a peaceful, stable and prosperous international community, and, in this process, to build solid and constructive relationships with various actors in the international community.
  Japan will promote development cooperation in order to contribute more proactively to the peace, stability and prosperity of the international community. Such cooperation will also lead to ensuring Japan’s national interests such as maintaining its peace and security, achieving further prosperity, realizing an international environment that provides stability, transparency and predictability, and maintaining and protecting an international order based on universal values.
• (2) Basic Policies
  A. Contributing to peace and prosperity through cooperation for non-military purposes
  Japan’s development cooperation has contributed to peace and prosperity of the world through cooperation for non-military purposes, which is one of the most suitable modalities for international contribution. Japan has consistently followed the path of a peace-loving nation since the end of World War II. Japan's development cooperation has been highly regarded by the international community as an embodiment of the country's sincere aspirations for peace and prosperity of the international community. Japan will continue to uphold this policy and comply with the principle of avoiding any use of development cooperation for military purposes or for aggravation of international conflicts, in proactively contributing to securing peace, stability and prosperity of the international community.
  B. Promoting human security
  Human security - a concept that pursues the right of individuals to live happily and in dignity, free from fear and want, through their protection and empowerment - is the guiding principle that lies at the foundation of Japan's development cooperation. Japan will thus focus its development cooperation on individuals - especially those liable to be vulnerable such as children, women, persons with disabilities, the elderly, refugees and internally-displaced persons, ethnic minorities, and indigenous peoples - and provide cooperation for their protection and empowerment so as to realize human security. At the same time, Japan will make efforts so that this basic policy will be understood and accepted widely among its partner countries, thereby mainstreaming the concept even further in the international community. Likewise, from the standpoint of its people-centered approach, Japan will also proactively contribute to promoting basic human rights, including women's rights.

II. Priority Policies

• (1) Priority Issues
  B. Sharing universal values and realizing a peaceful and secure society
  Peace, stability and security are prerequisites for nation-building and development. Accordingly, Japan will comprehensively address a wide range of factors causing conflict and instability, including poverty. It will also provide seamless assistance for peacebuilding from conflict prevention, emergency humanitarian assistance in the conflict situation, and promotion of conflict termination to emergency humanitarian assistance and assistance for recovery, reconstruction, and development in the post-conflict stage. Such assistance will address a range of needs such as: humanitarian assistance for refugees and internally-displaced persons; protection and participation of women and the socially vulnerable; reconstruction of social and human capital; the restoration of governance functions based on a trusting relationship between the government and the public; the removal of landmines and unexploded ordnance and the collection of small arms; and the restoration of public order.
• (2) Priority policy issues by region
  With respect to Africa, Japan will provide assistance through joint efforts of the public and the private sector through the process of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) so that Africa’s remarkable growth in recent years based on expanding trade, investment and consumption will lead to further development for both Japan and Africa. Japan will take particular note of Africa’s initiatives toward regional development and integration at the sub-regional level. Meanwhile, Africa still has countries that are prone to conflict or are burdened with an accumulation of serious development challenges. Bearing this in mind, Japan will continue to actively engage in assistance for peacebuilding and assistance to fragile states from the perspective of human security, providing necessary assistance with a view towards establishing and consolidating peace and stability, and solving serious development challenges in the region.
  The Middle East is an important region not only for Japan but also for the international community as a whole in terms of peace, stability and stable energy supply. With a view to proactively contributing to the peace and stability of the region and to the coexistence and mutual prosperity of Japan and the Middle East, necessary assistance will be provided to address challenges such as peacebuilding, reducing disparity and human resources development.

III. Implementation

• (1) Implementation principles
  B. Principles for securing the appropriateness of development cooperation
  (b) Avoidance of any use of development cooperation for military purposes or for aggravation of international conflicts
  Japan will avoid any use of development cooperation for military purposes or for aggravation of international conflicts. In case the armed forces or members of the armed forces in recipient countries are involved in development cooperation for non-military purposes such as public welfare or disaster-relief purposes, such cases will be considered on a case-by-case basis in light of their substantive relevance.
  (c) Situation regarding military expenditures, development and production of weapons of mass destruction and missiles, export and import of arms, etc.
  Japan will pay close attention to the situation in recipient countries regarding military expenditures, development and production of weapons of mass destruction and missiles, and export and import of arms, etc. This is done with a view to maintaining international peace and stability including the prevention of terrorism and the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and based on the position that developing countries should allocate their resources appropriately and preferentially for their own socio-economic development.

Among the grave issues related to conflicts are the widespread use of anti-personnel landmines as well as small arms and light weapons. Since those weapons are easy to manufacture, obtain and handle, they lead to intensification, recurrence, and prolongation of armed conflicts. They are also major obstacles to post-conflict reconstruction and development. In particular, anti-personnel landmines provoke extremely serious humanitarian effect because they indiscriminately harm civilians and others. Japan is actively contributing to the international efforts to address these pressing issues.

• Japan's Efforts in the International Community Regarding Anti-Personnel Landmines
  

  At the signing ceremony for the convention on the prohibition of anti-personnel mines (the Ottawa Convention) in December 1997, then Minister for Foreign Affairs Obuchi proposed the "Zero Victim Program" (Japanese/English). Under this program, Japan announced assistance of around 10 billion yen over five years starting from 1998 for landmine clearance and victim support. The budget was expended by October 2002. At the Fourth Review Conference of the Ottawa Convention in November 2019, Japan reviewed its past efforts and progress on support for anti-landmine measures, and shared examples of its assistance that also helps to improve local livelihoods through agricultural development in demined areas, as well as its contributions to South-South and regional cooperation activities (English).

• Advocating International Efforts to Address the Issue of Small Arms
  

  Small arms and light weapons are also called "de facto weapons of mass destruction" because they are actually used, and deprive a number of people of their lives. Easy to obtain and use, those weapons continue spreading. Japan has been playing a leading role in addressing the issue of small arms and light weapons through the UN framework since it was raised in the international community in 1995. Specifically, Japan contributed to the adoption of the UN Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects in 2001, and has been actively participating in the subsequent meetings, including the PoA Review Conferences. In addition, Japan, with other countries, submits a draft resolution on small arms every year to the UN General Assembly, contributing to raising international interest in preventing illicit trade in small arms and light weapons (meetings related to small arms). Through ODA, Japan supports collection of small arms and light weapons, development of related legal systems and strengthening of law enforcement agencies in African countries, as part of its efforts to reduce and prevent the illicit trade and diversion of these weapons. Japan also contributed $2 million in 2019 to the Saving Lives Entity (SALIENT) Fund, established to address the issue of small arms based on UN Secretary-General Guterres' disarmament agenda.

Landmine

In Colombia, the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) reached a peace agreement in 2016 to end a domestic conflict that lasted over half a century. The anti-personnel landmines that were buried during this conflict caused more than 11,000 casualties. It is said that even after reaching the peace agreement, landmines are said to remain buried in the areas that extend over more than half of the cities in the country.

In view of this situation, Japan provided seven demining machines manufactured by Nikken Corporation and a mobile container for storing maintenance and management tools for demining machines. In addition, Nikken, the Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC) in Cambodia, and the Lao National Unexploded Ordnance Programme (UXO Lao) in Laos implemented joint training on operation and maintenance of demining equipment in Japan, Cambodia, and Laos, for a total of 17 members of the Colombian Humanitarian Demining Brigade, consisting of members from the National Army of Colombia and staff of the Ministry of Defense. This enabled Japan to pass on the technology by transferring it through CMAC and UXO Lao to Colombian government officials, in what can be seen as a concrete example of “triangular cooperation" where Japan and developing countries transcend regions to support other developing countries.

Operational training was also conducted in Colombia for 30 members of the same team. These efforts are expected to strengthen the Colombian government's anti-personnel mine clearing capabilities and operations. This program will accordingly encourage the return of internally displaced people who had been forced to abandon their land due to the fear of landmines, and enable local residents to use the recovered land for farming. In this way, it is expected to lead to the realization of a society where people can live with peace of mind.