1. The Government of Japan has been conducting development cooperation activities in many fields. One of the most important objectives of these cooperation activities is to promote and encourage the transfer of technology.
2. Japan understands that incentives for technology transfer should be interpreted to include a variety of measures such as financial support and business environment support, and that supporting the business environment by strengthening intellectual property protection is one of several effective measures to promote technology transfer by private sectors. Based on this understanding, Japan has provided many incentive measures.
3. With regard to the incentives provided by Japan to enterprises and institutions in Japan, the Government of Japan would like to report on the following activities. The Government of Japan believes that the following activities contribute to raising the level of technological infrastructure in least developed countries (LDCs), which will bring about further technology transfer.
1 ACTIVITIES UNDERTAKEN BY TECHNICAL COOPERATION ORGANIZATONS
1.1 JICA
4. Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) provides technical cooperation through ODA, through which knowledge and technologies are transferred. The budget for technical cooperation through JICA amounts to approximately JPY176.4 billion for FY2014. Some examples of technical cooperation for LDC Members are listed in Table 1 of the Annex.
5. Under the Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development (SATREPS) programme, the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), as the funding agency for science and technology, collaborates with JICA to promote international joint research projects with developing countries, aimed at resolving global issues. JST supports Japanese research institutions/researchers for the project activities in Japan. JICA supports project implementation in developing countries, such as dispatching Japanese experts (researchers), providing equipment and training of personnel, and other supports related to the project in developing countries in the framework of ODA technical cooperation. SATREPS projects implemented with LDC members are listed in Table 2 of the Annex.
6. In 2013, JICA launched a new public-private partnership programme, "Collaboration Programme with the Private Sector for Disseminating Japanese Technology", which aims to promote an understanding of Japanese enterprises' technology, knowledge and systems and to explore the possibility of their use in developing countries. Some examples of projects implemented under this programme are listed in Table 3 of the Annex.
1.2 HIDA
7. The Overseas Human Resources and Industry Development Association (HIDA) provides various technical cooperation programmes for developing countries.
1.2.1 Technical Training
8. Training is conducted for engineers and managers invited to Japan from developing countries as trainees. Programmes include practical training implemented by private-sector companies, which enables trainees to acquire skills and techniques in specific fields. In 2015, four programmes were organized in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Lao PDR and Myanmar (see Table 4 attached in the Annex).
1.2.2 Management Training
9. Engineers, along with middle and top managers etc., from developing countries are invited to Japan to acquire business or factory management skills and techniques through understanding management concepts and observing real examples of their usage. In 2015, HIDA provided management training courses in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Myanmar, Nepal, Sudan and Zambia (see Table 5, Annex).
10. HIDA experts provide technical guidance and advice to local companies, and contribute to improvements in areas such as manufacturing technologies and business management skills. In 2015, technical guidance on various issues was offered in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Myanmar and Nepal (see Table 6, Annex).
1.3 JETRO
1.3.1 Sending Experts to the Private Sector - Dispatching Experts to Improve the Business Environment of Developing Countries in order to Promote Trade and Investment
11. The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) is engaged in dispatching experts to assist developing countries in the establishment of various rules and institutions necessary to create a business environment conducive to trade and investment. More specifically, at the requests of private sector bodies and other entities from developing countries, experts in such fields as development of the handicraft industry in Lao PDR were dispatched.
1.3.2 Supporting Developing Countries to Expand Their Exports Industries (OVOP)
12. JETRO helps developing countries to expand their exports to Japan and achieve self-sustainable economic growth, by providing experts to identify and develop promising export products. Experts provide advice and guidance on enhancing product design, production techniques and marketing strategies etc. Some projects under this activity are implemented as part of "One Village One Product (OVOP)" campaign, the initiative for supporting and promoting local economies in developing countries. The core activities of the campaign are to exhibit and sell craftworks, accessories, processed foods and other such products at "OVOP Market". These are sourced from developing countries in Asia, Africa, Central America and the Pacific and are sold at Narita and Kansai International Airports. This promotional exercise will be carried out to introduce the merits of these products to Japanese customers and to expand sales in the Japanese market.
1.3.3 Pilot Project for Business in Africa
13. The "Pilot Project for Business in Africa" is a project aimed at providing support, including financing, to Japanese companies planning to invest in African countries for the purpose of developing their business. JETRO provides support (by subsidizing partial expenses and providing local information) for the selected business plans proposed by Japanese companies or organizations that are considering investing in Africa. Once the project is implemented, it is planned that business tips learned through the project will be introduced to the public through JETRO's websites and seminars.
2 ACTIVITIES IN THE FIELD OF CLIMATE CHANGE
2.1 ACE2.0
14. In November 2015, Japan announced "ACE: Actions for Cool Earth 2.0", which aims to encourage developing countries' participation in a new framework for greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction, and to contribute to significant reduction of GHG emissions by leading the world in further reinforcing development of innovative technologies. This strategy consists of two pillars: the implementation of climate-related assistance to developing countries totalling approximately JPI 1.3 trillion from public and private sources in 2020; and innovation enhancement, which is key to taking actions against climate change while maintaining economic growth.
2.2 JCM
15. Japan establishes and implements the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM), in order to appropriately evaluate contributions from Japan to GHG emission reductions or removals in a quantitative manner achieved through the diffusion of low carbon technologies, products, systems, services, and infrastructure. In addition, this mechanism also aims to ensure the implementation of mitigation actions in developing countries, and to utilize them to achieve Japan's emission reduction target. Currently, bilateral consultations are ongoing jointly between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) the Ministry of the Environment (MOE), and countries that are interested in the mechanism. As of August 2016, Japan signed this partnership along with 16 countries, including Bangladesh, Cambodia and Lao PDR. Japan promotes the formulation of the JCM projects through various supporting schemes, and thus further accelerates the transfer of low carbon technologies.
2.3 Other initiatives relating to climate change
16. In addition to the aforementioned JCM, Japan promotes technology transfer relating to climate change through active participation in multilateral initiatives under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), such as the Technology Executive Committee (TEC) and Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN). The Private Financing Advisory Network (PFAN) is a multilateral, public-private partnership initiated by the Climate Technology Initiative (CTI). Japan is serving as the secretariat of the CTI. CTI PFAN operates to bridge the gap between investments and clean energy businesses. As an example of this activity, through organizing its forum and others, PFAN provided mentors for private companies that are engaging in the development of clean energy businesses in LDCs, such as Bangladesh, Cambodia and Nepal.
3 ACTIVITIES IN THE PHARMACEUTICAL SECTOR
17. Since providing good quality medicines forms the foundation of health care, it has become an important task to establish a system that can consistently ensure the availability of quality, safe and efficacious medicines in developing countries.
18. Furthermore, the spread of substandard/spurious/falsely labelled/falsified/counterfeit (SSFFC) pharmaceutical products is a significant public health problem that not only threatens the health of individual users, but also leads to a waste of public resources and to the risk of spawning drug resistant strains of bacteria. As such, strengthening measures to combat the distribution of SSFFC pharmaceutical products is also of great importance.
19. To that end, the Government of Japan, through JICA and Japan International Corporation of Welfare Services (JICWELS), conducts training programmes in order to develop and reinforce specialist personnel engaged in pharmaceutical regulatory services.
20. In FY2015, 11 participants from nine countries, including Sri Lanka and Sudan, participated in these training programmes in the pharmaceutical sector (see Table 7, Annex).
21. Additionally, the Government of Japan in cooperation with the Japanese Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (JPMA) contributes to the improvement of pharmaceutical regulations through participation in international conferences, and endeavours to disseminate the outcomes to developing countries in the Asian region.
4 ACTIVITIES IN THE FIELD OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
22. In FY2015, the Japan Patent Office (JPO) organized the following nine group training courses for government officials in cooperation with WIPO and the Asia Pacific Industrial Property Centre (APIC) of the Japan Institute for Promoting Invention and Innovation (JIPII): 69 officials from LDCs in total took part in these activities (see Table 8, Annex).
23. In FY2015, the JPO also held seven group training courses for the private sector, and 26 participants from LDCs took part in these activities (see Table 9, Annex).
24. In addition, Japan sends experts under the WIPO Funds-in-Trust/Japan programme implemented upon the request of developing countries in the Asia-Pacific region for the purpose of providing foreign IP offices with necessary instructions and advice. These experts contribute to enhancing the efficiency of foreign IP offices to grant industrial property rights, and streamlining IP administration through the rationalization of administrative procedures. Since 2008, the Government of Japan has also made annual contributions to WIPO (i.e. WIPO Funds-in-Trust/Japan for Africa and LDCs) on a voluntary basis to promote technology transfer in Africa, and in 2009, the JPO began to send its experts to Africa utilizing the contributions, as well as supporting digitalization of the IP infrastructure and providing scholarships to the African University in Zimbabwe and the University of Yaoundé II in Cameroon. In FY2015, as many as 12 programmes were organized under the WIPO Funds-in-Trust/Japan (FIT Japan), which had more than 1,300 participants including those from LDCs (see Table 10, Annex).
25. Moreover, JICA provides various IP training programmes by inviting government officials from various countries to Japan. Under such programmes, participants are expected to acquire general and basic knowledge through lectures, discussion and site observation, etc. and to share the knowledge among participants from various countries. Courses on intellectual property rights have been held since 2000. The courses had many participants from LDCs including Myanmar, Cambodia, Gambia, Uganda, and Tanzania.
