Global Environment

National Action Plan for Agenda 21 -Chap. 37

[Agenda 21] National Action Plan for Agenda 21

Chapter 37 NATIONAL MECHANISMS AND INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION FOR CAPACITY-BUILDING IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

A) Building a National Consensus and Formulating Capacity-Building Strategies for Implementing Agenda 21

Since the latter half of the 1960s in Japan, results have been achieved in the promotion of environmental measures, based on the Basic Law for Environmental Pollution Control and the Nature Conservation Law. However, dealing with the increase of pollution in cities and living environments and the discharge of waste, as well as the rising necessity to cope with global environmental problems, the Basic Environment Law was enacted in November 1993, in order to promote the construction of a society of sustainable development with reduced environmental load as well as international activities.

Meanwhile, there has been discussion in Government advisory councils in regards to the proper provision of assistance for activities for sustainable development in developing countries. As a result, the Outline for Official Development Assistance was established in June 1992, and it has been clarified in this Outline that the official development assistance of Japan aims for the realization of sustainable development on a global scale.

Taking the above into account, Japan attaches importance to the implementation of the following activities:

(1)
Japan will further clarify its principle of sustainable development through various types of national plans, including economic plans and plans for the national land use.
(2)
In plans on the regional level, Japan will promote the same kind of comprehensive and planned environmental conservation, and clarify its principle of sustainable development in various types of plans.
(3)
In order to provide assistance for the adoption of measures and programs for realizing sustainable development by developing countries, Japan will further positively provide various kinds of bilateral and multilateral cooperation.
(4)
As regards the drawing up of plans of action for individual countries, in addition to applying bilateral cooperation, Japan will also apply multilateral cooperation, including "Capacity 21" of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and will continue to provide assistance for the establishment of the Plan of Action for National Environment, which the World Bank is advocating in Africa.
(5)
In policy dialogue with developing countries regarding assistance, Japan will not only give sufficient consideration to the short-term effects of economic development, but also to its long-term effects, including those on environmental conservation.
(6)
Japan will further study policies for the realization of sustainable development through various kinds of development assistance. Also, in addition to further improving the involvement of environmental experts in surveys for the formulation matters for bilateral assistance based on necessity, as well as guidelines for environmental considerations by agencies and institutes, etc., which conduct assistance, Japan will thoroughly and appropriately provide such assistance, and furthermore cooperate with various countries so that consideration is given to the environment by agencies, institutes, etc., which are involved in multilateral development.

37-B) National Mechanisms and International Cooperation for Sustainable Development in Developing Countries

Japan, which has experience in promoting economic growth while overcoming pollution, believes that the development of human resources and the enhancement and diffusion of technology, including cooperation in research, are the most important factors in developing countries' self-help efforts from a long-term perspective. In the Outline for Official Development Assistance based on this awareness, Japan has placed importance on assistance in the field of developing human resources, which is the basis of the development of a country, and has clarified its purpose of promoting international cooperation for the enhancement and spread of the capacity to conduct research and development of developing countries, as well as technology, including research which will enhance adaptability.

Taking the above into account, Japan attaches importance to the implementation of the following activities:

(1)
In order to enhance the capacity of developing countries to deal with environmental problems, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), with the cooperation of related ministries and government agencies, conducts group training and training of researchers for individual developing countries regarding environmental conservation. Also, in addition to establishing (grant aid) centers for dealing with the pollution-related problems of developing countries, JICA is promoting cooperation in Thailand, China and Indonesia through combining various kinds of technological cooperation in the form of projects for these centers. Furthermore, JICA is promoting technological cooperation in the form of projects in order to prevent deforestation and the degradation of forests, as well as to promote the sustainable management of forests. It also studies the possibility for cooperation in the field of the conservation of biological diversity.
(2)
Based on the recognition that the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is a leading agency within the United Nations' system for the enhancement of the capacity of developing countries to deal with environmental problems, Japan has continued to make efforts to provide financial cooperation to the UNDP, and will continue to actively cooperate with it. Particularly, Japan continues to support the Capacity 21 Plan, which is implemented by the UNDP for the purpose of fostering and strengthening the capacity of developing countries to deal with environmental problems, in accordance with Agenda 21.
(3)
Placing great importance on enhancing the capacity of developing countries in the field of the environment through training activities at the UNEP International Environmental Technology Centre that has been established in Japan, Japan will continue to provide assistance for these activities.
(4)
Japan will continue to support research and surveys, as well as training programs, which aim towards the enhancement of the capacity of officials in regional development programs that are conducted by the United Nations Center for Regional Development (UNCRD).
(5)
Japan will continue to support the everyday work and the field work developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), for the purpose of giving policy-related advice to developing countries, as well as enhancing the capacity of these countries to draw up plans in the fields of food and agriculture.
(6)
Japan will continue to support the transfer of technology to developing countries, including the dispatch of experts to these countries and the reception of trainees from these countries, for the purpose of industrial development in developing countries, as conducted by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
(7)
Japan continues to support the maintenance and improvement of planning for meteorological work in developing countries, as conducted by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
(8)
In addition to the above-mentioned official technical cooperation, Japan will continue to implement measures (the Green Aid Plan) for the diffusion and enhancement of environment-related technology in developing countries, including the dispatch of experts to developing countries, the reception of trainees from these countries, local training activities in these countries, joint research and development with developing countries, and research cooperation for the purpose of transferring technology to developing countries, including pollution-prevention technology which is owned by the private sector.

Ministry of the Environment Government of Japan