JICA extends Rs. 420 m grant for public sector development

Finance Ministry Secretary Dr. R.H.S Samaratunga and Japanese Ambassador Akira Sugiyama signing the agreement at the Finance Ministry 

The Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has provided the Sri Lankan Government with a Rs. 420 million grant to provide training for the public service, the Finance Ministry said yesterday in a statement. 

Following exchange of notes between Ambassador Akira Sugiyama and Secretary to the Ministry of Finance Dr. R. Samaratunga, a Grant Agreement under JDS amounting to Japanese Yen 263 million (almost equivalent to Rs. 420 million) was signed on 17 July between Dr. Samaratunga and JICA Sri Lanka Office Chief Representative Fusato Tanaka.

 “I see this as an opportunity for our young Government officers to undergo studies in top Japanese universities in their selected professions. Building their competencies will benefit the whole system in return. Taking this opportunity I would like to appreciate the cooperation given by the Japanese Government through JICA for the implementation of this program during the past nine years,” said Dr. Samaratunga, concluding the signing.

The Project for Human Resource Development or JDS is been implemented in 16 target countries by JICA and principally aims to support self-help efforts of respective countries evolving capacity development of young government officials. Since initiation in 1999, around 4,300 participants from worldwide were accepted under JDS for post-graduate studies in top Japanese universities.

Renowned for its well-planned implementation measures outfitting to each country’s authentic needs, JDS implements a preparatory survey at the preliminary stage to determine each country’s implementation policy, priority fields of cooperation (study components), local selection procedure, and accepting Japanese universities supplementing each country’s human resource development strategy. 

Its special features includes academic exchanges such as immersion and exposure to various technical fields, while participants will also be able to understand Japanese society, learn common interests and work towards common goals creating a system for strengthening bilateral relations between Japan and Sri Lanka.

Introduced in 2010 to Government of Sri Lanka, 137 officials in the managerial capacity has been accepted for Masters and Doctoral degree courses in the areas of public policy and public finance, economics, business management, and environment disaster management and climate change. Signing of the present grant agreement will enable further 17 fellows to undergo Masters and Doctoral studies in Japan. 

Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is an incorporated administrative agency in charge of administering Japan’s Official Development Assistance (ODA), is one of the world’s largest bilateral aid agencies supporting socioeconomic development in developing countries in different regions of the world.  Under its new vision of “Leading the world with trust” set out in July 2017, JICA supports the resolution of issues in developing countries through a flexible combination of various types of assistance methods. In Sri Lanka, Japan has been providing financial and technical assistance since 1954 and is one of the largest donors to the country. On behalf of the people of Japan, JICA contributes to improve the lives of people in Sri Lanka.