Japan's Official Development Assistance White Paper 2005
Next PageBox I-4. Japan's Efforts Regarding MDG8
MDG8 outlines the issues which need to be addressed mainly by advanced countries in order to achieve the MDGs. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs compiled the contributions made by Japan to MDG8 from 1990 to the present into a report, which was then disclosed on the occasion of the mid-term review in 2005.
Summary of the report
Chapter 1: Official Development Assistance (ODA)
1. ODA volumes
- Japan was the largest ODA donor from 1991 to 2000. Japan's ODA between 1990 and 2003 was US$153.3 billion, which represents one fifth of total ODA in the world. In 2005, Japan announced that its volume of ODA would be increased by US$10 billion over the next five years. Japan will also double its ODA to Africa in the three years from 2005.
2. ODA through international agencies
- Japan cumulatively contributed US$37.2 billion (approximately 15% of total ODA in the world) during the period from 1990 to 2003, which was the largest contribution among DAC member countries.
3. ODA to least developed countries (LDC), landlocked developing countries (LLDC), and small island developing states (SIDS)
- Japan's total ODA provided to LDCs in 2003 was US$1.1 billion. Three out of the top five recipients of Japan's grant aid are LDCs.
- Japan's contributions to economic infrastructure in LLDCs were the largest among the DAC member countries throughout the 1990s.
- The Okinawa Initiative, development strategies for the Pacific Islands region, was adopted at the Third Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting (PALM).
4. Improving aid effectiveness
- Since 2000, Japan has made efforts to reform its ODA in order to increase its effectiveness, including the revision of the ODA Charter, and the restructuring of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC). Concrete efforts to improve aid effectiveness were put forth in countries such as Vietnam.
- Japan independently compiled and announced its own action plan at the Paris High-level Forum on Aid Effectiveness.
- Japan's untying ratio regarding bilateral ODA in 2003 was 96.1%.
5. Poverty reduction through economic growth
- Cumulative amount of ODA provided to East Asia and the Pacific during the period from 1990 to 2001 was US$78.1 billion (of which US$110.7 billion went to Sub-Saharan Africa). During that time period, the average economic growth rate of 7.5% was attained, freeing 200 million people from poverty.
- Japan has been taking initiatives to foster private sector development through the promotion of trade and investment. 6. ODA for basic social services
- Japan has actively supported such sectors as basic education, health, and water and sanitation. (For details, see Part 1, Chapter 2, Section3)
7. Contributions to disaster reduction
- On the occasion of the earthquake off the coast of Sumatra in 2004, Japan promptly extended US$500 million in aid. At the UN World Conference on Disaster Reduction held in Kobe in January 2005, Japan announced its Initiative for Disaster Reduction through ODA.
Chapter 2: Trade, Foreign Direct Investments (FDI), and Other Official Flow (OOF)
1. Improving market access and reducing trade distortion
- In April 2003, Japan expanded coverage of duty-free and quota-free treatment on imports from LDCs. As a result, approximately 93% of all imports from LDCs now receive duty-free, quota-free treatment.
- Japan imported US$380 million worth of agriculture products from the LDCs in 2002, which was the second highest amount among the leading industrialized countries. Export subsidies on agricultural products remained at zero.
2. Enhancing trade-related capacity
- Japan has been providing over 1,000 projects aimed at trade-related capacity enhancement each year.
- As for development of trade-related infrastructure, the cumulative amount from 1990 to 2002 is the largest among DAC member countries.
3. OOFs and FDI
- Throughout the 1990s, Japan's OOFs to developing countries was the highest among DAC member countries. In general, Japan was the second largest investor for private flows.
- From the viewpoint of promoting the South-South cooperation, Japan is actively contributing by hosting the negotiation of bilateral investment treaties (BITs) among developing countries, holding Africa-Asia Business Forums (AABF), and establishing the TICAD Exchange Network.
Chapter 3: Debt Relief
- Japan has participated in debt relief based on international agreements.
- As a voluntary measure that goes beyond the scope of the Enhanced HIPC Initiative, Japan has voluntarily provided a 100% reduction of all ODA and applicable non-ODA debts.
- Along with the other G8 countries, Japan agreed to a proposal to cancel 100% of the outstanding debts of HIPCs to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the International Development Association (IDA), and the African Development Fund (AfDF).
- As for the debt reduction under the Enhanced HIPC Initiative, Japan contributed US$2.2 billion, the largest amount among G8 countries (representing approximately 21% of total G8 contributions).