The human resources, knowledge, high level of technical competency, and institutions that Japan has developed in the course of its democratic economic development while valuing its own traditions are assets for development cooperation. Japan builds on these strengths to engage in development cooperation.

A. Investment in People

Since Japan began providing ODA in 1954, it has consistently emphasized “investment in people” to transfer its technologies and expertise through acceptance of trainees and dispatch of experts, and strove to develop human resources in a detailed manner. For the purpose of contributing to solving problems in developing countries, Japan has accepted from developing countries trainees in a wide range of fields, including public administration, agriculture, forestry, fisheries, mining and manufacturing, energy, education, health, medicine, transport, and communications. In FY2022, 8,227 new trainees from 135 countries and regions participated in training programs in Japan, while a total of 1,086 new trainees from four countries participated in the In-Country Training Program, which is conducted in developing countries and regions, and 1,624 new trainees from 103 countries and regions participated in the Third Country Training Program. Furthermore, through the Dispatch of Technical Cooperation Experts, Japan aims to develop the capacity of human resources in partner countries by providing quality policy recommendations and developing technologies tailored to local conditions, in pursuit of enhanced development outcomes. In FY2022, a total of 6,776 JICA experts, both new and those still involved from the previous fiscal year, were dispatched to 101 countries and regions.

As part of its efforts to train professionals in the industrial sector, Japan has provided support through the ABE Initiative (African Business Education Initiative for Youth)Glossary and the KaizenNote 22 Initiative, which are driven by industry-academia-government collaboration, as well as technical assistance in partnership with international organizations. As of December 2023, the ABE Initiative has offered training opportunities to over 6,700 youths from Africa. There are also good examples of ABE Initiative participants returning to their home countries after the completion of their training and applying the specialized knowledge and skills they acquired in Japan to find employment in Japanese companies, start their own businesses, and assume prominent positions in government agencies and universities in their home countries, while contributing to the development in their own countries and the overseas expansion of Japanese companies (see “Stories from the Field 1” for the activities of the graduates of the ABE Initiative, and Part V, Section 1 (6) for follow-ups after the training).

In addition, Japan has set up “Project NINJA (Next Innovation with Japan)”Note 23 to support startup ecosystems in developing countries. In collaboration with various stakeholders, the project provides assistance in identifying issues faced by entrepreneurs, making policy recommendations, developing corporate management capacity, strengthening cooperation among entrepreneurs, pairing entrepreneurs in developing countries and Japanese companies, and promoting investment.

B. Improvement of Japan’s Loans

In order to promote “visible Japanese development cooperation” through utilizing and transferring Japan’s advanced technologies and know-how to developing countries, the Government of Japan set up the Special Terms for Economic Partnership (STEP) under the yen loan scheme, which features, among other measures, the expanded scope of application and lower interest rates. In addition, to promote the steady formulation and implementation of infrastructure development projects through Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) in which Japanese companies participate, Japan introduced the Equity Back Finance (EBF) loanNote 24 and the Viability Gap Funding (VGF) loan,Note 25 while taking into account the improvement and application of measures by the recipient governments. In recent years, the ratio of orders received by Japanese companies has remained at around 60% to 70% in loan projects, which supports their overseas business expansion.

In addition, as follow-up measures for “Partnerships for Quality Infrastructure,”Note 26 the Government of Japan also makes efforts to improve its yen loans and Private-Sector Investment Finance (PSIF) in terms of speeding up Japan’s yen loan procedures and creating new loan options. Furthermore, in preparing for public health emergencies, Japan recognizes the importance of securing funds to respond promptly when crises occur (R: Response), as well as ensuring prevention (P: Prevention) and preparedness (P: Preparedness). Therefore, Japan has developed two new financing packages: Results-Based Loans and Stand-by Credit for Urgent Response to Epidemics Loans. The former provides along with technical cooperation the funds necessary for borrowing countries to strengthen their prevention and preparedness efforts in accordance with the level of their progress. The latter provides loan facilities in advance in order to meet the financial needs of countries in the event of a pandemic or other public health emergency. Results-Based Loans can also be applied to sectors other than health, and are expected to contribute to making the yen loan system faster and more flexible.

C. Co-Creation for Common Agenda Initiative

Japan’s advanced technologies and science and technology are great strengths. At the same time, as emerging and developing countries make a technological catch-up and their needs are diversified, it is becoming important to implement development cooperation in a way that adds value and combines structural aspects of quality cooperation, including the provision of materials and equipment and the construction of facilities, with non-structural aspects, including involvement in operation and maintenance, institution building, and human resources development. Given this situation, Japan launched the Co-creation for common agenda initiative, which proactively proposes appealing menus that combine various schemes such as ODA and other official flows (OOF) to increase synergy and leverage Japan’s strengths, while utilizing new social values and solutions that emerge from co-creation of dialogue and collaboration (see Part I, Section 1 for the details on the Co-creation for common agenda initiative and the status of preparations for its implementation).

D. Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JICA Volunteer Program)

A JOCV working as a midwife at a provincial hospital together with her counterpart in Cambodia (Photo: JICA)

Started in 1965, the Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JICA Volunteer Program) has a long record of success over half a century. More than 55,300 volunteers have been dispatched to 99 developing countries and regions in total. This is truly a program of public participation and has contributed to development in these countries and regions, exemplifying the “visibility of Japanese development cooperation.”

The JICA Volunteer Program is highly regarded both domestically and internationally. The program not only contributes to economic and social development in developing countries and regions, but also promotes mutual understanding and friendship between Japan and these countries and regions through cultivating local people’s affinity for Japan. Moreover, the program deserves attention for ex-volunteers applying their experiences and knowledge in Japanese society. For example, ex-volunteers who have obtained global perspectives through the program contribute to the revitalization of local communities in Japan and the business expansion of Japanese private companies to developing countries.

In order to promote these initiatives, the Government of Japan strives to make it easier for more people to join the program through supporting ex-volunteers in pursuing their careers, as well as disseminating information on how to participate in the program while retaining one’s job (see “Featured Project” for the activities of a JOCV who participated in the program while retaining their job and Part V, Section 1 (1) for the scheme for dispatching company employees to developing countries as JOCVs (partnership program)).

Featured Project 15

Philippines

Aiming to Improve the Livelihood of Farmers!
Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JICA Private-Sector Partnership Volunteer Program)Note 1　Category: Community Development
ONIMURA Yuya (Ezaki Glico Co., Ltd.) (April 2016 – March 2017)

I was dispatched to a small island called Bohol Island in the Philippines as a Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteer (JOCV), and participated in a project that aimed to improve the livelihoods of farmers by promoting sales of agricultural products. Local farmers were engaged in the production and processing of agricultural products through agricultural cooperatives formed in each region, but they faced the issue that they did not know how to sell even though they knew how to produce. To solve this challenge, I worked with the Provincial Government of Bohol and agricultural cooperatives to open a direct sales store that would be run by the farmers themselves, aiming at increasing sales of their agricultural products.

I focused on providing some marketing measures to promote sales at the direct sales store, drawing on my experience in sales activities for retailers in Japan as a sales representative of Ezaki Glico Co., Ltd. Together with farmers, I devised and implemented easy-to-see product displays for customers visiting the store. I also led activities to attract more customers by distributing flyers and utilizing social media. In addition to in-store activities, I participated in exhibitions to introduce and sell their products and promote them to restaurants. As a result, we were able to increase both the number of customers and sales volume by more than 1.5 times compared to when the store was first opened. The direct sales store is still in operation as of 2023.

After completing my term as a JOCV and returning to Ezaki Glico, I was assigned to the Philippines for six years as an expatriate of the company, where I was engaged in the establishment of its local subsidiary and expanding product sales. What I had acquired through the JOCV program was very useful for my work there. This included communication and management skills tailored to the country, and my understanding of the differences in preferences between the people of the Philippines and Japan shown in terms of what they value and what they find pleasure in.

Currently, I am back in Japan and in charge of export operations. I would like to continue to utilize my experience as a JOCV to connect the head office in Japan and local corporations overseas and contribute to expanding overseas sales of our products.

The author visiting a workshop that processes soap from carabao (water buffalo) milk (Photo: ONIMURA Yuya)

The author discussing sales methods with members of the cooperative (Photo: ONIMURA Yuya)

Note 1: In 2016, the author was dispatched through the “Private-Sector Partnership Volunteer Program” in which a volunteer was dispatched by a company to participate in the Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JOCVs) (participation with incumbent occupation). Currently, this program is implemented as a “partnership program,” recruiting volunteers from various organizations such as private companies, universities, and local governments (see also Part V 1 (1)).

1. Note 22: An approach in which each worker at a production site comes up with and implements their own ideas on how to eliminate inefficiency in the production process and improve quality and productivity. In Japan, in the period of rapid growth after WWII, this approach was cultivated on the job by the manufacturing industry to increase quality and productivity, and is based on 5S: “Sort, Set, Shine, Standardize, and Sustain.”
2. Note 23: Launched by JICA in January 2020, it supports activities for entrepreneurs aimed at facilitating business innovation in developing countries.
3. Note 24: The Equity Back Finance (EBF) loan provides a yen loan for the developing country’s share of the investment of the Special Purpose Company (SPC) that takes the lead in public projects in the developing country. It is restricted to PPP infrastructure projects, wherein the recipient country governments or their state-owned companies and others make the investment, and the Japanese companies participate as a business operating body.
4. Note 25: The Viability Gap Funding (VGF) loan is a yen loan for VGF that the developing country provides to the SPC in order to secure profitability expected by SPC when Japanese companies invest in the PPP infrastructure projects by the developing country in principle.
5. Note 26: Announced in 2015, the Partnership for Quality Infrastructure has the following pillars: expansion and acceleration of assistance through the full mobilization of Japan’s economic cooperation tools, collaboration between Japan and ADB, expansion of the supply of funding for projects with relatively high-risk profiles by such means as enhancement of the function of JBIC, and promoting “Quality Infrastructure Investment” as an international standard.

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