/DEVELOPMENT BULLETIN 10/ JAPAN: Claims aid has always been geared to OECD’s new shift in policy.

By Suvendrini Kakuchi Reprint | | Print |

Suvendrini Kakuchi

TOKYO, Feb 17 1996 (IPS) - Japan, the world’s single largest aid donor, is applauding a policy shift by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to make developing countries more responsible for their development programmes.

Tokyo, which takes pride in what it hails as a “successful” aid programme, says its policy has always been geared to making the recipient nations more responsible, and points to fast developing South-east Asia as an example of how this has worked.

“Japanese aid is only one factor when examining the fast development in these countries. Their efficient management skills and high rate of production also played a big part,” notes Ryotoro Suzuki, in charge of Japan’s aid policy in the Foreign Ministry.

The annual report released this week by the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), says donor countries will from now on expect a “collaborative undertaking with developing countries towards sustainable development”.

“The DAC report is most welcome. It is what Japan has been saying for all along,” says Suzuki. “Japan believes in this policy and has geared its aid budget to encourage developing countries to help themselves.”

But while lessening the influence of donor countries in determining the use put to the disbursed funds, the DAC does identify key elements for effective development strategies.

Those elements include sound economic policies, a vigorous private sector, gender equality, enhanced participation, good governance, accountability, respect of human rights and sustainable environmental practices.

And while NGOs here applaud Japan aid commitment and acknowledge that its aid has seen rapid infrastructural development in South- east Asian capitals, they say that the funding programme has in the past missed the target with regard to some key areas like human rights and the environment.

Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) say recipient countries in the region have at the will of donors, concentrated too much on economic development often at the expense of workers’ rights and the environment, resulting in expanding rich-poor gaps and high pollution.

Sixty per cent of Japanese aid budget is geared toward Asia with Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia having benefited the most over the past 15 years. And Japan proudly points to the economic strides made by these countries during the past decade as a measure of the success of its programme.