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 . Promotion of international development cooperation in universities
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The switch by universities from cooperation on an individual level to cooperation on an institutional level |
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It is hoped that the participation of Japan's universities in international development cooperation will not only broaden the base of people involved in the provision of support but will also make the Japan’s "visible" assistance a reality by utilizing the nation's intellectual resources in international development cooperation.
In the past, however, the involvement of universities' academic staff has tended to be on a strictly personal basis with the result that lecturers have not been remunerated for their contribution or, in other words, have not had their costs covered, despite being obliged to neglect their lecturing and/or research work in order to make their contribution. The universities have thus felt themselves seriously inconvenienced by lengthy or frequent involvement in international development cooperation on the part of their academic staff.
To resolve this problem, the universities must start to participate on an institutional basis based on contractual arrangements drawn up with international aid agencies and to receive compensation to cover their personnel and other occasional costs, thereby enabling them to arrange for replacements to take over, for example, when regular staff members are away.
The implementation of international development cooperation on the basis of contracts entered into with international aid agencies will not only have financial benefits, it will also be of considerable benefit on the education and research fronts. For example, there are lots of projects in areas such as engineering, medicine, the environment, and agriculture that would appeal to universities with a particular interest in carrying out surveys, research, evaluations, and analyses in those areas and in assembling related resources for future research.
Involvement in projects mounted by international organizations would also help raise the universities' international profiles and contribute to the development of large numbers of specialties. On the teaching front, it would also make a major contribution to the development of human resources with practical skills by opening the way to teaching through in-field experience in developing countries.
Assuming national universities may also take on corporate identities at some future point, it would certainly be desirable for those national, public, and private universities with the capacity and the desire to do so to utilize their particular abilities to involve themselves in selected international development cooperation projects on an independent institutional basis. Given the mission and the function of the nation's universities and considering also the need to distinguish them clearly from private firms of consultants, we must encourage them to participate but at the same time to confine their participation to projects with particular relevance to their primary role in education and research.
The involvement of universities on an institutional level in international development cooperation projects is also a desirable outcome for the international aid agencies in that it will help them secure a stable framework for cooperation. From the standpoint of Japanese ODA, it will also make it possible for the Japan’s "visible" assistance to become a reality by utilizing the nation's intellectual resources. We might also expect it to increase the recruitment of Japanese personnel by international institutions. |
| 2. |
Factors and problems limiting the involvement of Japanese universities in international development cooperation, and ways in which they might be resolved |
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| (1) |
Limitations placed on national universities by the system
In addition to contract-related problems (the form in which contracts between Japan's national universities and outside organizations are drawn up is not entirely consistent with general contract practice), execution restrictions can also leave national universities short of staff when lecturers are called away to work on cooperation projects.
However, by taking on corporate status, national universities would significantly reduce the restrictions placed on them in their capacity as national institutions and as they became more independent, these restrictions would ultimately tend to be steadily reduced in number.
However, given that private universities, which have always been free to cooperate as institutions in their own right, have never been overly active in taking part in cooperation projects, there is no guarantee that the removal of systemic restrictions on national universities would give rise to an immediate surge on their part of involvement in international development cooperation projects. Thus, if national universities are to participate in the types of activities indicated in (2) below, we must take steps both to resolve common problems faced by national, public, and private universities alike and to consider what sort of incentives might best be offered.
Furthermore, when national universities eventually start to adopt corporate status, careful consideration must be given to matters such as the way in which National University Corporations (provisional name) handle the indirect costs involved in the execution of contracts with international aid agencies and the types of projects in which they are permitted to involve themselves, the ultimate aim being to encourage an active inflow of external funds while bearing in mind the essential mission and functions of a National University Corporation.
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| (2) |
Problems facing national, public, and private universities alike, and possible solutions (action)
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Creating a foundation for international development cooperation activity in universities
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Encourage VIPs from international aid agencies to give lectures at universities and hold discussion meetings with university administrators to promote greater understanding of international development cooperation activities in universities. Provide individual universities with opportunities to obtain consultation and advice on international development cooperation. |
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Consider introducing international development cooperation activity as one of the criteria by reference to which universities are evaluated. Consider introducing a system whereby university teaching staff are assessed in part by reference to their involvement in international development cooperation. |
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Establishing relations with international aid agencies
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Create a database (universities, university staff) to facilitate the introduction of specialists in particular disciplines in response to requests from international aid agencies for Japanese people with the potential to take part in specific international development cooperation projects. |
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To ensure that Japanese specialists have the opportunity to make suggestions to international aid agencies, invitations should be issued and meetings arranged with representatives of the aid agencies whenever university staff are dispatched overseas. It is also important for exchanges of university and international aid agency staff to take place and to this end steps should be taken to ensure that university staff, aid agency representatives, and others with experience in this area are able to meet with each other and make the necessary arrangements. |
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The environment should be further prepared by, for example, incorporating the registration systems of organizations such as the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) to ensure they make more active use of the universities to carry out the research involved in sector surveys and project evaluation. |
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Promotion of tie-ups (1) between Japanese universities and (2) between Japanese universities on the one hand and firms of consultants and overseas universities on the other
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International development cooperation projects tend to be large and to involve work in several specialist fields and there is consequently a worldwide tendency to form consortia to handle projects of this type. A database (universities, university teaching staff) should therefore be created to handle inquiries from organizations with which tie-ups might ultimately be arranged (Japanese firms of consultants, Japanese and overseas universities, etc.) and introductions of specialists and related arrangements made as necessary. |
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Contract conditions and other specialized requirements for the formation of consortia must be prepared and research into, and advice concerning, issues raised by tie-ups provided. |
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Promotion of participation of university teaching staff in meetings of organizations such as the ALO *6 and GDN *7, which are also commonly attended by other interested organizations such as overseas universities, and in personnel exchanges with members of these organizations. |
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Improvement of universities' capacity to undertake projects
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If universities are to undertake international development cooperation projects commissioned by international aid agencies, they are going to have to improve their understanding of the way in which such agencies work and their ability to take on projects of this type. To this end, university teaching and administrative staff must be coached in basic project implementation, research methods, English language presentation, formulation of planning proposals, drawing up English language contract documentation, and the like. |
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Formation of field-specific international development cooperation strategies
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If universities are to make an effective, independent contribution to international development cooperation projects in areas in which they have particular expertise, they must formulate strategies based on Japan's perceived advantages, backed up by internationally acknowledged papers and the like. |
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More specifically, branches of the field-specific International Educational Cooperation Research Centers already established in Japanese universities in areas such as education, engineering, agriculture, law, and medicine must hold workshops and research conferences for domestic and foreign universities, firms of consultants, international aid agencies, and the like, and encourage the formulation of field-specific strategies. |
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| 3. |
Support Center for the promotion of international development cooperation in universities (Annex 5) |
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Since the activities referred to in Points (2) - to (2) - above will have the basic effect of bringing Japanese universities together either with international aid agencies or with other interested organizations (firms of consultants, other domestic and foreign universities, etc.), it is important for us to establish a Support Center covering all universities and disciplines to provide them with support for international development cooperation activities undertaken as part of their programs of education and research. (excluding the university evaluations referred to in Point (2) - above or creation of the domestic aid agency environment referred to in Point (2) -).
By contrast, the development of international development cooperation strategies in the areas referred to in Point (2) - above should be led by individual universities in accordance with their particular areas of expertise. However, in the case of specialist inquiries forwarded to the Support Center by international aid agencies and related organizations, it is important for the Support Center to consult with the field-specific International Educational Cooperation Research Centers and work closely with them in their particular fields of expertise.
Furthermore, since Japanese universities have to date participated only very rarely in international development cooperation on a contractual basis, we must not expect too much of them in a short time but must allow them time to establish medium and long-term relationships with international aid agencies and associated organizations and to find their feet by a process of trial and error. |
| 4. |
International Development Strategy Research Center (provisional name) |
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In addition to utilizing their intellectual resources in international development cooperation activities, it is hoped that, given their experience in evaluating the appropriateness of government policy, the universities will also be able to provide objective research into the government's ODA policy based on their assessment of domestic and overseas trends.
To this end it is suggested that consideration should also be given to the establishment of independent International Development Strategy Research Center (provisional name) in Japanese universities to undertake ODA strategy-related research and analysis.
Research results produced by these centers should be forwarded for consideration by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' comprehensive ODA strategy committee and other interested government agencies to facilitate the formation of a Japanese ODA strategy that represents our nation's accumulated wisdom.
The network of contacts built up by the International Development Strategy Research Center during the course of their research and analytical work will also be extremely useful to the Support Center. Research and analysis carried out by the International Development Strategy Research Center will also be useful when field-specific university centers are considering Japan's potential advantages in association with the Support Center. Moreover, in light of the synergies implicit in the combined functioning of the two types of center referred to in Sections 2- (2) and 2- (3) above, careful consideration must also be given to how best secure a close relationship between the two, including the form in which they are established (See Annex 6(PDF:118KB)). |
| *6 ALO: |
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The Association Liaison Office for University Cooperation in Development in the US |
| *7 GDN: |
The World Bank-related Global Development Network |
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