Ara Hitoshi is deputy director general for the South Asia Department of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). He is responsible for overseeing cooperation with Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Maldives. JICA has implemented various cooperation projects, especially in the areas of social and economic infrastructure development, disaster resilience and poverty reduction. Ara was on a brief visit to Nepal in May to take stock of the situation here. Prithvi Man Shrestha of The Post caught up with Ara to ask him about JICAs future cooperation in Nepal. Excerpts:
How has JICAs cooperation been in Nepal so far, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic?
Because of Covid-19, JICA was restricted in dispatching survey teams, experts and JICAs missions to Nepal for a while. However, JICA is back. Now we are willing to accelerate our cooperation through face-to-face communication. With this idea, my visit has taken place. Communication is very important to deeply understand things.
JICA recognises that the development of South Asia is quite important and Nepal is one of the core countries. JICA implemented and continued various cooperation projects even during the Covid-19 situation. The year 2022 marks the 120th anniversary since the first Nepali students went to study in Japan. So it is some kind of symbolic year on the issue of human resource development.
JICA is willing to keep working on development with high quality infrastructure and initiate the build-back-better policy for the Covid-hit country. This year, JICA is planning to start new technical cooperation in the areas of climate change and sustainable forest management, flood risk management and a career support programme for migrant workers. We will provide a career support programme to migrant workers. This is quite a new initiative for JICA which pays attention to migrant workers who have experience of living in Japan. There are many Nepali migrants to Japan.
JICA has the country assistance strategy of 2016 for Nepal. Is JICA preparing a new assistance strategy?
The country assistance policy is the policy of our government. I think our government is thinking about introducing a new one. I don't have detailed information about it. As per the Country Assistance Policy 2016, there were four priorities: Post-earthquake recovery, social and economic infrastructure, poverty reduction and governance enhancement.
What is the specific policy for Nepal now?
Under these four core priority areas, there are several sub-areas such as education, health, agriculture, infrastructure, road development and urban infrastructure improvement. All these sectors are important. Now, there is also a huge need for recovery from Covid-19. Still, there are many needs in many areas. Nepal got Covid-19 vaccines from Japan to recover from the pandemic.
Is there any plan of the Japan government to support livelihoods affected by the pandemic?
Our government decided to provide a policy credit of 10 billion yen in January. This support will help the Nepali economy to strengthen. The impact of Covid-19 is very big and wide, and it covers many areas. So, we want to consider what kind of activity is necessary to improve the situation against the impact of Covid-19. We are seeking the possibility to conduct some cooperation in the health sector, and in general, when we think about measures, we think there are some important pointsinfectious disease prevention and other research and development. We are thinking if there are any needs in these sectors in Nepal.
The Covid-19 pandemic has shed light on the need for good health infrastructure. Will Japan increase support in these areas?
Actually, there is a need to improve health infrastructure. Covid-19 is an important issue but there are many needs in Nepal. My understanding is that our government is thinking of conducting an aid project based on the needs of each sector. Obviously, it is important to upgrade the health infrastructure in Nepal.
How can Japan help to modernise Nepals transport network?
Obviously, Nepal is in need of improving its road network. There is a need to improve urban transportation infrastructure as well as the national road networks. So, now we are discussing these issues with the Nepal government. At the same time, there are other development partners such as the Asian Development Bank which are providing some kind of support for improving the national road networks. So, I would like to continue discussions with the Nepal government so that some concrete projects are identified where we can contribute.
China is enrolling countries under its flagship Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Japan itself appears to be prioritising helping to develop infrastructure abroad. The G7 countries introduced the Build-Back-Better initiative. Can we expect more competition among countries to help Nepal in infrastructure development?
In my personal opinion, JICAs support in the infrastructure development of Nepal is for the development of Nepal. We dont engage in competition with other countries. Of course, people say competition is important. But I think it is necessary to think about what is the need of Nepal. An appropriate approach should be adopted to solve Nepals problem, and that should be based on need. We also think that infrastructure is very important, including road infrastructure. I would like to continue discussing the matter with the Nepal government.
Lately, we have been receiving more aid as loans than grants from Japan. Is it Japanese policy to provide more aid as loans?
We are implementing both schemesgrants and loans. We dont stop grant aid. Nepal has been developing and upgrading to the status of a middle income country. It means that Nepal can enjoy aid under loan schemes. With loans, we can implement large projects compared to grant aid projects. For example, we provided Development Policy Credit amounting to 10 billion yen in January. If it was grant aid, it could be around 2-3 billion yen. Of course, there are big projects being implemented with grants too. Utilising loans, we can contribute more. If the GDP per capita is very low for the recipient country, we cannot implement aid in loan projects.
What was the reason behind providing policy credit? Will JICA continue to provide aid in policy credit form?
It is in response to the Nepal governments urgent needs. As you know, the Nepal government was fighting Covid-19 very well. We heard that Nepal needed some kind of financial resources to implement these kinds of activities. The policy credit covers various areas of the health sector. The Nepal government needed to secure more budget to implement activities in the health sector. What I want to say is that there was an urgent need for financial support, and we recognised this and decided to provide this kind of support. Whether policy credit will continue will depend on Nepals needs. We have to discuss it with our government. I personally think there is a need for this kind of financial support to Nepal even in the future.
There is a growing possibility of markets for Nepal's hydropower in power-hungry South Asia. What are the prospects of Japanese investment in the hydropower sector?
I am not an expert in this area. I cannot say concretely about this. But I expect many Japanese investors will have interest in this country. The power sector is JICAs important sector for cooperation. Now, JICA is implementing a technical cooperation project on Integrated Power System Development. The project covers Independent Power Producers (IPP) related issues. We are supporting Nepal to supervise and manage the activities of the IPPs. I expect that many Japanese power plant operators and private companies who are interested in the energy market will increase. I also expect that the total investment from Japanese companies will increase in Nepal. I think there is a possibility of attracting Japanese investments in the service sector. For this, Nepalis who studied and worked in Japan can be a big asset for Nepal.
Any further plans of JICA to support civil aviation as Japan has been supporting this area?
As you know, the ADB is playing a big role in developing infrastructure investment. There was a miserable air accident in the 1990s in Nepal, and many JICA experts had lost their lives in that accident. As a JICA staff member like me, we remember this incident. So, how to make air travel safe is a very important issue for JICA. We would like to collaborate with other partners in this sector too to continue our support in this sector in Nepal.
Follow this link:
'We don't engage in competition with other countries' - The Kathmandu Post
- QazInnovations: Kazakhstan seeks to bring volume of innovative ... - inform.kz/en - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- World Earth Day: What is green finance, and why do we need it so much? - The Economic Times - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Netarts Bay cleanup scheduled for Earth Day with SOLVE and ... - Tillamook Headlight-Herald - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Shaping humanitarian and ethical governance in Pakistan - The Express Tribune - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Remarks by Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen on the U.S. ... - Treasury - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Investing in nature: Building local economies through conservation - McKinsey - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Lalith's economic vision for Lanka: Export or perish - The Sunday Times Sri Lanka - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Alliance for an Energy Efficient Economy to help A.P. govt. implement energy-efficiency projects - The Hindu - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- President Biden Announces Key Appointments to Boards and ... - The White House - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- A Restraint Approach to U.S.China Relations: Reversing the Slide ... - Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Carrollton Mayor and City Council Election Preview 2023: Meet your ... - Star Local Media - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Governor Kelly Signs Bipartisan Bill to Expand Teacher Workforce in ... - Kansas Governor - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Indigenous Peoples Must Have Full Representation, Participation in ... - United Nations - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- The EPA Region 6 Announces a Total of $23 Million to ... - U.S. EPA.gov - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Kansas governor strikes funding for anti-abortion pregnancy centers ... - Kansas Reflector - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Can You Fight for Climate Justice Without Being Antiwar? - Common Dreams - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Sustainable Tourism: A World leading to the road of Environment consciousness - Nomad Lawyer - NomadLawyer - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Atlanta's Cop City and the Struggle for Climate Justice - Resilience - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Jaishankars visit to Uganda, Mozambique went almost unnoticed but it indicated Indias bold gambit in Africa - Firstpost - April 23rd, 2023 [April 23rd, 2023]
- Natural resource - Wikipedia - October 30th, 2022 [October 30th, 2022]
- Non-renewable resource - Wikipedia - October 30th, 2022 [October 30th, 2022]
- Minister Wilkinson Launches Phase 2 of the Regional Energy and Resource Tables - Canada NewsWire - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Executive Secretary participates in Russian Energy Week to advocate for decarbonization in the UNECE region ahead of COP27 - UNECE - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Renault Group: The Future Is NEUTRAL: The circular economy is stepping into a new era! - Yahoo Finance - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Economy Expected to Contract Further in 2023, as the Fed Appears Resolved to Tame Inflation - PR Newswire - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Brazils Runoff Election Will Have Enormous Effects on the Global Climate Crisis - Truthout - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Health disparities and health inequalities: applying All Our Health - GOV.UK - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Opinion: Biopolitics is the invisible hand shaping mental health - The Connecticut Mirror - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Avaaz urges Georgieva and Trudeau to lasso-in commitments from IMF to attend December's vital UN Biodiversity Talks in Montreal - GlobeNewswire - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Kochi as a global city? Why not, asks the man behind Ahmedabads mega city story | Manorama English - Onmanorama - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Hennessy and Thurgood Marshall College Fund Announce partnership with Group Black and The Bishop Gallery to make "America's Most Influential... - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Pollution Prevention Week highlights ways to reduce, reuse and recycle waste - Michigan (.gov) - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- England headed for incineration overcapacity, warns UKWIN - Resource Magazine - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- 3 years of the Principles for Responsible Banking: our vision for change United Nations Environment Finance Initiative - UNEP Finance Initiative - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- Isn't It Time To Challenge The Growth Paradigm? OpEd - Eurasia Review - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- Coalition of Nearly 50 Organizations Launches 'Tear the Paper Ceiling' Campaign to Raise Awareness Around the 70+ Million Workers in the U.S. Skilled... - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- Remote work can actually be more productive: More Hub readers respond to the work-from-home phenomenon - The Hub - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- Mendocino Public Health on record-setting Sept. heat: We can't just treat this as a once-in-15-years occurrence - The Mendocino Voice - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- Carbon Ridge Secures $6 Million Investment from Leading Climate Investors and Maritime Industry Leaders - Business Wire - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- Regenerative Travel Is the Next Phase of Responsible Tourism - Outside Online - Outside - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- NNPC: Between rebranding and reforms, By Tijah Bolton-Akpan - Premium Times - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- Embodying the spirit of Malaysia - The Edge Markets MY - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- Nonprofit executive takes on state-appointed economic development role - MiBiz: West Michigan Business News - August 29th, 2022 [August 29th, 2022]
- Noble Mineral Exploration Signs Exploration Agreement with the Constance Lake First Nation - Junior Mining Network - August 29th, 2022 [August 29th, 2022]
- China and the Democratic Republic of the Congo: A Progressively Deepening Bilateral Partnership - The Geopolitics - August 29th, 2022 [August 29th, 2022]
- Oil money is flooding into Guyana. Who will benefit? - Reuters - August 29th, 2022 [August 29th, 2022]
- Remote-work revolution exposes need for better data, tracking tools to evaluate workforce, pay and economy - The Spokesman Review - August 29th, 2022 [August 29th, 2022]
- We need rare earth elements for a greener future, but there's a catch - CBC.ca - August 29th, 2022 [August 29th, 2022]
- BRNHA the steward of the living traditions of WNC: Opinion - Citizen Times - August 29th, 2022 [August 29th, 2022]
- The Fiji Times Back in history: Future of forestry sector - Fiji Times - August 29th, 2022 [August 29th, 2022]
- Hochul announces grand opening of Capital Region BOCES Career and Technical Education Center - Troy Record - August 29th, 2022 [August 29th, 2022]
- Predicting the Future of Greenhouse Gas Emissions - Columbia University - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- JD.com Ranks 46th on 2022 Fortune Global 500 - Yahoo Finance - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- Minister Wilkinson Releases New Report Showing the Impacts of Climate Change and Necessity of Climate Adaptation in Ontario - Canada NewsWire - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- Do Armenians have a future as an independent nation? Part 4 - Armenian Weekly - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- Getting the diagnostics right 2 - BusinessWorld Online - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- GrammaTech and T.E.N. Announce Call for Nominations for Product Security Executive of the Year Awards - Business Wire - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- Energy Vault and Jupiter Power Announce Agreement for Battery Energy Storage Projects in Texas and California Totaling 220 MWh - Business Wire - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- The North East LEP: Thinking bigger and planning together for the future - Bdaily - August 15th, 2022 [August 15th, 2022]
- It's not enough to buy American. You also need to sell American all around the world. - The Ripon Society - July 27th, 2022 [July 27th, 2022]
- Bid to designate 50k acres in UP as wilderness highlights tension over public lands - MLive.com - July 27th, 2022 [July 27th, 2022]
- A 'Living Wall' At Texas A&M Could Be The Key To Smarter Cities - Texas A&M University Today - July 27th, 2022 [July 27th, 2022]
- Architects and designers must embrace the circular economy - Project Scotland - July 27th, 2022 [July 27th, 2022]
- Strategic Minerals increases Tin and Tantalum production in June and Q2 2022 at its Penouta Mine - Yahoo Finance - July 27th, 2022 [July 27th, 2022]
- Issues of the Environment: Improving recycling rates and quality of recycling materials in Washtenaw County - WEMU - July 27th, 2022 [July 27th, 2022]
- Joe Oliver: The Liberal Cabinet Needs an Intervention - The Epoch Times - July 27th, 2022 [July 27th, 2022]
- SDG&E and Cajon Valley Union School District Flip the Switch on Region's First Vehicle-to-Grid Project Featuring Local Electric School Buses Capable... - July 27th, 2022 [July 27th, 2022]
- Reimagining business: The greatest debt of all time - Newsroom - July 13th, 2022 [July 13th, 2022]
- Moody's affirms A1 rating of Newfoundland and Labrador, changes outlook to stable - Moody's - July 13th, 2022 [July 13th, 2022]
- New Mexico's oil and gas revenues are breaking records and complicating budgets - New Mexico Political Report - July 13th, 2022 [July 13th, 2022]
- FACT SHEET: White House Announces over $40 Billion in American Rescue Plan Investments in Our Workforce With More Coming - The White House - July 13th, 2022 [July 13th, 2022]
- The Class of 2022 Is Ready to Workon Their Terms - SHRM - July 13th, 2022 [July 13th, 2022]
- Faraday Copper Announces Updated Mineral Resource Estimate for the Copper Creek Project in Arizona; Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources Exceed... - July 13th, 2022 [July 13th, 2022]
- Inside the Triangle's latest job opening data: What boards are showing and who's hiring - WRAL TechWire - July 13th, 2022 [July 13th, 2022]
- Reserve Bank keeps blinkers on inflation, raising OCR to 2.5% - Stuff - July 13th, 2022 [July 13th, 2022]
- Abe's drive to bring back Japan | The Interpreter - The Interpreter - July 13th, 2022 [July 13th, 2022]
- UCF Hospitality Researchers Expertise Is Tapped for Global Sustainable Tourism Report - UCF - June 30th, 2022 [June 30th, 2022]
- Feminist Economics and the Fight for Human Rights - OHCHR - June 30th, 2022 [June 30th, 2022]
- Biden Administration announces historic coastal and climate resilience funding - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration - June 30th, 2022 [June 30th, 2022]
- Why green ammonia will be the workhorse of EU's future hydrogen economy - EURACTIV - June 30th, 2022 [June 30th, 2022]