Official Development Assistance (ODA)

Japan's Action

March 22, 2021

Japan's Assistance for the Development of Legal Systems

After taking its first steps toward becoming a modern nation state in the Meiji era, Japan built the basic elements that form a nation through a wide variety of efforts toward modernization. In the course of this process, while studying the laws of Europe and the United States, Japan developed a modern legal system that was compatible with its traditional culture and social systems. In light of its own experiences in this regard, it has been providing support for the development of legal systems in developing countries in Asia and other areas, including supporting lawmaking and developing legal frameworks. At the same time as encouraging developing countries' own self-help efforts based on the rule of law, this kind of assistance helps developing countries form the essential foundations for achieving sustainable growth.

Specifically, Japanese legal experts are sent to developing countries to dialog and coordinate with counterpart organizations there. While taking into account its own experiences and knowledge, Japan respects the culture, history, society, and ownership of the recipient countries, and assists them with developing legal systems that are in line with their situation and needs. These are the key features of Japan's support. In order to enable the recipient countries to operate legal systems themselves, Japan's assistance covers not only drafting and revising laws, but also developing the foundations necessary to properly operate and enforce the legal systems, training human resources in the field of law, legal education, and strengthening practical capabilities related to operation.

Japan's assistance for the development of legal systems began in Vietnam in the 1990s. Centered on the introduction of a market economy, the so-called "Doi Moi policies" were introduced in Vietnam in the 1980s. However, its civil code and other laws and legal systems at the time were incompatible with a market economy. Therefore, the Japanese government and JICA assisted the Vietnamese government with drafting a civil code in cooperation with Japanese legal experts, and also supported the development of in-country human resources in the field of law in Vietnam. The resulting new civil code enacted in 2015 reflected many of the proposals made by people in Japan who had been involved, and included provisions, etc. regarding modern ideas about trade. Japan also provided assistance for various other laws and legal systems, including a code of civil procedure and administrative case litigation act. Assistance toward developing legal systems in Vietnam continues to this day. In recent years, an aim has been the development of systems to ensure consistency between normative legal documents.

Japan is also assisting with the development of legal systems in other countries besides Vietnam. Recently—on December 6, 2018—the first civil code was approved by the National Assembly in Laos. Japan had been supporting the development of legal systems in Laos since 1998, dispatching incumbent prosecutors, lawyers, etc. to spread legal knowledge and develop human resources in the field of law. Since 2012, it had also been working on assistance with drafting a civil code that would bring together the Lao people's notions regarding what kind of one would be compatible with their society and culture. The result was a civil code consisting of over 600 articles. This is the fourth civil code to have been drafted and enacted with Japan's assistance, following those of Vietnam, Cambodia, and Nepal.

Japan has also been assisting Myanmar since 2013. With a major focus also placed on improving the business environment for Japanese affiliates, etc., the action includes creating textbooks for judges about resolving business-related disputes, and introducing a civil conciliation system.

In recent years, the scope of assisting with the development of legal systems has been expanded to encompass intellectual property laws in addition to civil codes and codes of civil procedure. In this way, Japan is making use of the lessons learned through its own modernization to provide developing countries with assistance toward developing legal systems, and a variety of other relevant support.

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