Outreach Visit to Singaporean Institutions to Share Research Results on Peace and Development in the Indo-Pacific

JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development (JICA Ogata Research Institute) sent a research team to Singapore from Feb. 7 to 8, 2024, to present the results of the research project "The New Dynamics of Peace and Development in the Indo-Pacific: How Countries in the Region Proactively Interact with China." The team included Senior Research Advisor Takahara Akio (Professor at the University of Tokyo), Visiting Fellow Kitano Naohiro (Professor at Waseda University), Visiting Fellow Shiga Hiroaki (Professor at Yokohama National University), Visiting Fellow Asada Ray (Lecturer at Yamaguchi University), Executive Senior Research Fellow Orita Tomomi, and Research Officer Imai Natsuko.

With China's rise to power, the geopolitical significance of the Indo-Pacific countries has increased. This research project, which began in July 2021, focused on the agency of smaller states in the region in regard to their diplomatic policies toward China and other bigger states. The project has conducted case studies on the Philippines, Laos, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Uzbekistan, Serbia and Zambia.

On Feb. 7, the JICA Ogata Research Institute co-hosted a workshop with the National University of Singapore Institute of South Asian Studies (NUS-ISAS). JICA Ogata Research Institute research team included co-researcher Professor Cheng-Chwee Kuik from the National University of Malaysia and presented the research findings. Two researchers from NUS-ISAS also made presentations on the geopolitical and security trends in South Asia and all participants engaged in a lively discussion. On the following day, the team visited the S. Rajanathunam School of International Studies at the Nanyang Technological University and the National University of Singapore, East Asian Institute, to share the results of the study. Takahara explained the analytical framework developed by this study, called the five-factor model, which consists of domestic politics, economy, peace and development, global international relations, and regional international relations, while Kitano reported on the latest Chinese aid estimates and Shiga reported on the revision of Japan’s Development Cooperation Charter and the latest introduction of the Official Security Assistance programme. Asada then shared the survey results on people’s perceptions of China in Zambia and Sri Lanka, and Imai shared the results of a media analysis using Bangladesh as a case study.

The participants of the workshops asked questions such as "Do smaller states build long-term, strategic relationships with bigger states, or do they select their partners based on economic opportunities as they arise?” and "Southeast Asian and South Asian countries are aiming to strengthen connectivity both regionally and globally since connectivity is directly related to the national interests of economy and security,” and commented on the findings. In this regard, geopolitics within the region is also dynamic and important.

The results of this research were published as a special issue of the Journal of Contemporary East Asia Studies , consisting of 12 articles, including 7 case studies written by international researchers and five articles written by the above-mentioned members of the JICA Ogata Research Institute. Please take a look.