Paper short abstract:

The paper focusses on Prime Minister Abe’s capacity building of regional coast guards, arguing that it well represents the situation in which Japan’s foreign security policy options continue to be restricted by the regional power structure, domestic interests as well as the antimilitarist norms.

Paper long abstract:

Abe Shinzō was one of Japan’s politically most active prime ministers in the country’s post-war history. When he first took office in 2006, he did not hide that he was personally strongly motivated to reform Japan’s security policy, thus challenging the country’s long-lasting constitutional commitment to pacifism. The capacity building of the neighboring countries’ coast guards through Official Development Assistance (ODA) was one of the most visible strategies to strengthen Japan’s security engagement in the region. However, instead of seeing it as an expression of Abe’s assertive foreign security policy, this paper argues that the capacity building of regional coast guards shows that Japan’s foreign security policy options remain strongly restricted by the regional power structure, domestic interests as well as the antimilitarist norms.

Paper short abstract:

Japan and South Korea are some of the largest ODA donors to Asia, including the Philippines. This research paper aims to compare & contrast their ODA using the Philippine case. Their strategies on giving out ODA were analysed, and how the Philippines can better utilize their aid.

Paper long abstract:

When it comes to ODA, Japan has been a long established donor, while South Korea is still emerging. Nevertheless, both Japan and South Korea are some of the largest donors especially to Asia. Both have been previous recipients of development aid themselves. This paper aims to compare and contrast the official development assistance of both countries overall, and whether this applies to the Philippine case. It also aims to explore the ODA projects specifically towards the Philippines, and to analyse whether South Korea as an emerging donor is following Japan's footsteps in development aid. The researcher compiled data from the National Economic and Development Authority and listed all the ODA loans and grants of Japan and South Korea to the Philippines from 2010 to 2019, since South Korea became a member of OECD DAC from 2010. The findings show that the ODA of Japan and South Korea are very similar with each other. They are very similar in terms of focusing on bilateral aid rather than multilateral aid, on Asia particularly Southeast Asia, on lower middle income countries, on high tied aid, on larger number for ODA grants but higher aid amount for ODA loans, on collaboration with national businesses for ODA projects, and their ODA being in line with own national interests and recipient country national development plans & international sustainable development goals. For both countries, the infrastructure development projects have the largest portion of loans to the Philippines. However, both countries quite differ in terms of sectoral aid. Japan focuses on energy, transportation, communications, industries, community development, social reform, institutions, and governance, while South Korea focuses on rural development, health, and education. It is assumed that both countries are using their own model of development and expertise in giving development aid. With regards to the Philippines, it has accumulated a lot of debt through the ODA system, especially that a very high amount of it is allotted to loans. The Philippines needs to be wise and should invest in projects that are truly for long term sustainable development. Overlapping aid must also be avoided.

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Paper short abstract:

This paper looks at how Japan has been shaping its development aid framework with changing forces of economic difficulties and environmental disasters both in Japan and in counterpart countries, especially in Southeast Asia.

Paper long abstract:

Environmental change has been one of the signifying elements of the global change agenda. International and regional/local processes of development have also taken towards a rather comprehensive form, including various aspects of environmental change and human-environment interaction. Japan has always been one of the development aid-friendly countries and has been contributing to the international development aid platforms via bilateral and multilateral/organizational linkages. Japan, on the other hand, has been experiencing both natural and man-made environmental disasters in incrementally increasing phase in recent years. Japan`s development aid partners, especially in Southeast Asia, have also been suffering from wide catastrophic impacts of natural-environmental disasters. These environmental challenges with natural and man-made disasters and the changing economic conditions have forced Japan to redefine its development aid strategies with the recent years.

This paper is part of a project focusing on environmental and societal change issues in Southeast Asia and specifically looks at how Japan has been shaping its development aid framework with changing forces of economic difficulties and environmental disasters both in Japan and in counterpart countries, especially in Southeast Asia. The first part of the paper looks at the changing direction of development and development aid frameworks with environmental emphasis in the 21st century. Then the paper focuses on Japan`s ODA policies and economic as well as environmental forces that transformed the ODA strategies in recent years. The last part examines how Japan would reconfigure its own position as one of the main providers of aid within the changing global development aid scheme and communicates its international aid experiences with the forces of environmental change within the country.