JAPAN INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION AGENCY (JICA)

Makoto Imamura, Assistant Resident Representative, Japan International Cooperation Agency (delivered by Masahiko Takizawa)

JICA in the Philippines: Official Development Assistance

Today I would like to make a brief presentation on Japan's ODA, JICA's role and our new approach to technical cooperation and some on-going JICA projects and activities in the Philippines specifically on the fisheries subsector.

Official Development Assistance: categories of Japan's ODA

• Bilateral grant

• Bilateral loan

• Contributions and subscriptions to multilateral donor organizations

Japan's ODA is divided into three categories; bilateral grant; bilateral loan and contributions and subscriptions to multilateral donor organizations.

JICA is a government agency mandated to implement technical cooperation. It also provides technical support to grant aid and bilateral loans through the conduct of technical feasibility studies.

JICA is in charge of technical cooperation and grant aid is administered by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but when it comes to implementation JICA conducts the actual design of the [project].

Technical Cooperation

• Technical Training

• Dispatch of Experts

• Provision of Equipment

• Development Study,

• Dispatch of JOCV, etc.

Grant Aid Cooperation

• General Grant Aid

• Grant Aid for Fisheries

• Aid for Increased Food Production

Japan's ODA by Type of Cooperation, 2001

Units: ¥100 million

The figure shows the distribution of Japan's ODA budget by type of cooperation. In 2001, 60 percent of Japan's ODA was in the form of bilateral grants. Technical cooperation accounted for 35 percent of the total ODA budget.

Japan's ODA by Region (FY 2000)

Units: ¥100 million

On a regional basis the Asia region receives the largest share of Japanese ODA, about 43 percent.

Background

Improved transparency and accountability

• Public disclosure of government/administrative information

Budget cut in Japanese Fiscal Year 2002

• ODA Budget ten percent cut

• JICA Budget five percent cut (¥ 9 billion)

Because of budget constraints and the need to improve transparency and accountability the Japanese Government has decided to adopt a new approach for using ODA resources. In fiscal 2002 the ODA budget was slashed by 10 percent and the JICA budget was reduced by 5 percent.

So in light of the policy of our government, JICA is looking toward the improvement and efficiency of its technical cooperation programs. These are the major considerations in designing the new approach to technical cooperation.

Objectives

Quality improvement of technical cooperation

• Country-Based Approach

• Development Issue-Oriented Approach

• Output-Oriented Approach

• Efficient and Flexible Implementation

• Our key objective is to improve the efficiency and achieve greater flexibility in implementing technical cooperation.

Program approach

Vision

• Medium to long-term framework

• More visible impact at macro level

• Visible input-output relationship among projects

It has a medium to long-term framework. Since our budget is allocated on an annual basis we tend to have stand-alone projects but we are trying to make multi-year allocations for more visible impact at the macro-level and visible relationships among the projects.

In consultation with concerned agencies of the Government of the Philippines JICA has identified three programs through which it can effectively assist the agriculture and rural sectors in the Philippines.

Overall goal: mitigation of disparities

• Poverty Alleviation and Mitigation of Regional Disparities

• Improvement of Living Standards (DAR)

• Agrarian Reform

• Community Support Program

• Rural Growth

• Food Security (DA and NIA)

• RD and E Network Program (Modernization)

• Rural Development System and System Management Program (Sustainability)

Local Government Units and People's Organizations support the DAR, DA and NIA

• Aquarian Reform and Community Support Program

• Research Development and Extension Network Program

• Rural Infrastructure Development Program and Management Program

These two programs aim to address two key issues

• Improvement of living standards

• Food security in the Philippines

Over the long term, it is envisioned that these programs will contribute to one of the overall goals of the Government of Japan's bilateral aid activities in the Philippines that is mitigation of disparities.

Let me point out that JICA is still in the process of consolidating each of the three programs in order to identify appropriate projects that can contribute to the development objectives of the Government of the Philippines for the agriculture and rural sectors.

Activities for aquaculture development under FY 2002

• Dispatch at SEAFDEC of one long-term expert on fish disease from March 2000 to March 2003

• Implementation of Third Country Training Program on Responsible Aquaculture Development (SEAFDEC)

• Fourth year of implementation (1999-2003) of the second phase

• Fourteen foreign participants and two from the Philippines

• General Grant Aid Project (DA-BFAR-SEAFDEC) for the Establishment of Laboratory Facilities for Advanced Aquaculture Technology worth ¥ 895 Million at SEAFDEC, Tigbauan, Iloilo

• Friendship Program for the 21^st Century:

  - 22 Philippine delegates from the fisheries sector went to Japan from May 15 to June 6 2002

  - Project to Enhance the Capability to Monitor Toxic Red Tide Phenomenon (BFAR-DA) from August 1999 to June 2002

Conclusion

Finally let me explain JICA's activities the fisheries subsector especially in the field of aquaculture development. At present we have one grant aid project, one long-term expert project and one training program.

The training program is implemented in collaboration with SEAFDEC and this is our fourth year of implementation of the second phase, which is the ninth year in total. Fourteen foreign participants and two from the Philippines are trained yearly.

We have been cooperating with SEAFDEC for quite a long time. There is accumulated expertise in SEAFDEC that we would like to utilize in order to help other developing countries. The idea is the promotion of south-south cooperation.

General Grant Aid Project for the Establishment of Laboratory Facilities for Advanced Aquaculture Technology totals 895 million Japanese yen.

In the near future we will consolidate our Technical Cooperation Program for the fishery subsector. Aquaculture development can be or is one of the potential priority areas and Research Development Extension Network Program of JICA.

Thank you very much.