Reflecting changes occurring in the international arena, the demand for foreign aid has become increasingly complex and diverse. Japan has been positively tackling these challenges, which range from cooperation for global issues to such new areas as assistance for democratization, introduction of a market economy, and support to women in development. Indeed, meeting these new challenges is an obligation and task Japan has to fulfill as the top donor.

1) Environment
The issue of the environment is one of the new areas with which Japan has come to grips in its early stage. It has already become a part of the philosophy and principles of Japan's ODA. Following its commitment at the 1992 meeting of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) to contribute 900yen billion-1yen trillion ($7 billion to $7.77 billion at the exchange rate then prevailing) over five years starting from FY 1992, Japan has already carried out environment-related ODA projects equivalent to approximately 700yen billion during the past three years. In other areas, Japan has also played an active role by operating its standards flexibly in providing financial assistance, by sending missions to formulate environment-related projects, and by establishing environment centers.

2) Population and AIDS
The world's population, currently standing at 5.75 billion, is expected to reach 10 billion by the middle of 21st century. The rapid growth in population is posing serious problems for sustained development and the preservation of the global environment. At the same time, according to WHO, the number of people infected with HIV/AIDS is projected to rise to about 40 million around the world by the year 2000, about 90% of them in developing countries. Concerned about the serious impact of these problems, world leaders met twice in 1994 Å| at the United Nations Conference on Population and Development in September in Cairo and at the AIDS Summit Meeting in December in Paris Å| and the necessity for pooling knowledge around the world to address the AIDS problem has been recognized.

In February 1994, Japan announced a "Global Issues Initiative (GII) on Population and AIDS" and committed to contribute around US$3 billion within its ODA programme during the seven-year period starting from FY 1994 to FY 2000 to contribute to solving the problems of the population and HIV/AIDS. In carrying out these ODA projects, we attach great importance to working closely with other donor countries, international organisations and NGOs.

3) Children's Health
With a view to eradicating poliomyelitis and to spreading the vaccination of children against infantile paralysis, we have been actively promoting campaigns for children's health primarily in Asian countries in concert with WHO and UNICEF activities.

Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI): Under a plan for eradicating poliomyelitis by the year 2000, Japan has been promoting projects aimed at achieving this target in the West Pacific region by 1995, and has provided China, the Philippines and the three Indochinese countries with polio vaccines and cold chain for the national immunization day (NID) in these countries.

Children's Vaccination Initiative (CVI): With the improvement of the quality of already existing vaccines, the development of new vaccines and the streamlining of the vaccine supply system, Japan has provided vaccines (for the prevention of polio, measles, tetanus and BCG and an intermixture of the three and cold chain) to the three Indochinese countries, Kenya, and Zambia for normal vaccinations. Japan also contributes funds to WHO in support of its vaccine system.

4) Women in Development
In order to realize development of society as a whole in developing countries, efforts should be made to ensure that women also enjoy the benefits of such development and are given opportunities to demonstrate their abilities and to make contributions as full members of society. This idea is winning widespread support among many countries as reconfirmed at the World Conference on Women in Beijing in September 1995.

Long aware of the importance of the role of women in development of their economies and communities, Japan has carried out a number of projects intended to promote the participation and benefit-sharing of women by way of the creation of vocational training facilities, and to improve health care services for mothers and children and family planning, to drill wells and to reduce women's burden, and to train women posted in administrative positions whose jobs are related to women's role.

In the planning stage of projects also, due care has been exercised to include experts on gender analysis in preliminary survey missions, to conduct hearings with women in target areas, and to have local female experts participate in planning sessions for projects.

Since the end of the Cold War, values such as democracy and the market economy are being generally accepted in the international community. Even in the former Soviet Union as well as developing countries, a growing number of countries have started to introduce the democratic process and a market-oriented economy. These became common values to be shared by the world community. It has to actively support and assist them in their efforts at new nation-building. Moreover, it has become important for averting conflicts to help countries rehabilitate and reconstruct their economies ravaged by prolonged civil wars and to lend support to building peace after such conflicts end.

In recent years, Japan has attached special importance to aiding the efforts of countries in transition and developing countries which are struggling to introduce the democratic process and a market-oriented economy, and has stepped up its aid to the Central and East European countries, Mongolia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, the five countries of Central Asia, Latin American countries, Palestina and South Africa.

Donor countries are searching for more effective and efficient ways of assistance. As the tasks facing donors of development aid have become increasingly complex and diverse, they are pressed to devise new methods to meet the needs of the times in addition to the conventional bilateral aid and that given through international organisations. In keeping with such changes in demand, Japan has been promoting coordinated cooperation with other industrialized countries and south-to-south cooperation in conjunction with developing countries enjoying a relatively high level of economic development.

In the aftermath of recurring disasters and proliferating ethnic conflicts since the end of the Cold War, a large number of people were displaced as refugees or disaster victims in many parts of the world. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, by the end of 1994 approximately 27 million people became war refugees and disaster victims. Japan has extended active assistance to these people through such international agencies as UNHCR, the World Food Programme (WFP), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). (In 1994, Japan contributed about $12 million to UNHCR, the second largest amount after the United States.)