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Paper short abstract:

This research investigates the ongoing process of creating a category of humanitarian and development practitioner as a profession in Japan, underlining at the same time the importance of validating this practice and its outcomes through securing recognition of outside audiences.

Paper long abstract:

Over the last three decades Japanese NGOs grew in size and scope, and became increasingly engaged in the delivery of Japanese foreign aid projects. Furthermore, they have participated more frequently in humanitarian response to national emergencies, such as 3/11 and the 2016 Kumamoto Earthquakes, raising their visibility in the domestic setting. Yet despite these attainments, the lack of recognition among domestic audience continues to be a noticeable feature of working in Japanese NGO sector at present.

This paper explores the puzzle of limited societal recognition for professional identities and activities of humanitarian and development practitioners working in Japanese NGO sector among the general public. The analytical framework of the paper is informed by insights from sociology of occupations and professions, studies on aidwork, and social movement theory. The paper utilises information gather through semi-structured interviews with members of Japanese NGOs and quantitative data gathered from surveys published by the government and non-profit actors. Methodologically, the paper is informed by thematic analysis.

In the paper I propose that despite the increasing professionalisation and professionalism in the sector, activities of NGO practitioners are frequently mistakenly construed as volunteering. Additionally, the concerns about anti-government or “political” undertone to NGO activities indicate a limited acceptance for advocacy function of NGOs existing among some sections of the public. I argue that these misperceptions constitute a considerable challenge for the fostering of recognition and building of domestic constituencies for development and humanitarian NGOs. Finally, I explore how the dominant approach to non-profit activism in Japan promoted by the government in the post 1995/1998 climate in the public sphere is a consequential causal factor in hindering the process of institutionalising the idea of professional NGO practitioners as a legitimate knowledge-based work in the public sphere.