The Government of Japan has set a target of 1,000 Japanese staff working in UN-related organizations by the year 2025. To achieve this, MOFA is cooperating with universities, Japanese offices of international organizations, and relevant government ministries and agencies, while proactively seeking out, training, and supporting human resources with the capacity to be active and to contribute on the world stage. As part of this mission, MOFA is engaged in PR to assist in finding human resources, with efforts such as providing guidance to explain the employment systems of international organizations, both in Japan and abroad, as well as holding career information sessions where explanations are given by executives and HR managers from international organizations visiting Japan.

MOFA conducts the Junior Professional Officer (JPO) Programme, which dispatches young Japanese people who wish to become the regular staff of international organizations, for two years in principle as staff in international organizations, and allows them to accumulate necessary knowledge and experience, with the aim of attaining a regular staff position after their tenure. As such, MOFA strives to nurture human resources to be active in international organizations, including in the area of development cooperation. Since the participation in this system in 1974, a cumulative total of approximately 1,700 people have already been dispatched, 59 of whom were in FY2017.

Additionally, in FY2015, MOFA reformed its existing human resources development program and launched the “Program for Global Human Resource Development for Peacebuilding and Development” with the purpose of finding and fostering human resources in peacebuilding and development cooperation, and developing their careers in a comprehensive manner. This program consists of: the “Primary Course,” which provides domestic and overseas training for individuals willing to pursue careers in the fields of peacebuilding and development, the “Mid-Career Course,” which supports the career advancement of individuals who already have a certain amount of practical experience in those fields, and the “Global Career Course” (started from FY2018) for professionals who hope to build a new career in international organizations. Furthermore, the government of Japan provides “Career Development Support,” which imparts skills and knowledge necessary to obtain positions and advance careers, for those who seek employment in international organizations and NGOs in the fields of peacebuilding and development.

Moreover, since 1997, JICA has offered internships to graduate students and other individuals who conduct research closely related to development cooperation, and are willing to play an active role in this field in the future. In FY2017, 119 individuals were offered internships at various workplaces including the worksites of development consultants. In addition, the “Human Resources Information Center for International Cooperation” within JICA provides recruitment information related to international cooperation, human resources registration service, information on various training and seminars, career counseling, and other services on its PARTNER (Participatory Network for Expert Recruitment) website. This initiative is based on the recommendations of the Second Consultative Committee on ODA Reform in 2002, and aims to provide more opportunities to people who have specialized knowledge and diverse experiences at ministries and agencies, JICA, NGOs, and international organizations. In addition, JICA offers the Associate Expert Program and the Capacity Enhancement Training among other types of training to foster and secure international cooperation professionals.

Furthermore, the Government of Japan secures human resources with a high degree of professional abilities and abundant work experience in developing countries through the Senior Advisor System. The JICA Research Institute conducts policy research based on actual experience in development cooperation using internationally recognized methodologies, while providing its research outcome and recommendation to the governments of developing countries and the donor communities in international development.

The Government of Japan will work with universities and research institutions, and strive to reinforce the intellectual foundations to plan and disseminate development cooperation activities by promoting joint policy research and intellectual networking among researchers from Japan and developing countries, while utilizing Japan’s strengths.

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