JICA President Tanaka Visited the U.S.: Strengthening partnerships between JICA and multilateral and bilateral organizations

From September 19 to 22, JICA President Tanaka Akihiko visited the United States.

During his visit to New York, President Tanaka met with United Nations (UN) Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed; President of the 77th session of UN General Assembly Csaba Kőrösi; United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Administrator Achim Steiner; the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC) Chair Carsten Staur; and US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) CEO Scott Nathan. This visit was held on the occasion of the UN General Assembly High-Level Week, which included the 2023 SDG Summit, and President Tanaka also attended the High-Level Meeting on global health.

During his visit to Washington D.C., President Tanaka met with World Bank Group President Ajay Banga; International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva; Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) President Ilan Goldfajn; and US Agency of International Development (USAID) Administrator Samantha Power.

During President Tanaka’s meeting with UN Deputy Secretary-General Mohammed, the pair exchanged views on the usefulness of financial mobilization and human security in accelerating the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Furthermore, regarding cooperation in Africa, they also discussed the importance of long-term engagement, exemplified by such efforts as the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD).

At the meeting with President of the 77th session of the UN General Assembly Kőrösi, both parties discussed the efforts and challenges involved in achieving the SDGs and confirmed the need to use science and to allow for evidence-based policymaking tailored to each country’s situation.

With UNDP Administrator Steiner, President Tanaka exchanged views on the value of strengthening developing countries’ systems to accelerate the mobilization of domestic resources and private-sector finance. They also discussed the importance of promoting human security as well as its operationalization.

In his discussions with DAC Chair Staur, President Tanaka shared the Japanese government's and JICA's perspectives on development, including human security, based on the new Development Cooperation Charter revised in June this year. They also exchanged views on the importance of continued cooperation with developing countries.

While meeting with DFC CEO Nathan, President Tanaka agreed to deepen their collaboration in the Indo-Pacific, especially in Southeast Asia and Pacific Island Countries.

President Tanaka attended and delivered a keynote speech at a High-Level Meeting on global health, titled “Toward more Resilient, Equitable and Sustainable Universal Health Coverage by 2023,” co-hosted by the Government of Japan during the UN General Assembly High Level Week. The speech focused on achieving equitable access to medical countermeasures (MCMs) for infectious diseases through a needs-based response, mobilizing funds rapidly and at scale, and strengthening the national and regional capacity to respond to such diseases.

During his meeting with World Bank Group President Banga, they exchanged views on continuing and strengthening the annual dialogue called “Deep Dive,” held annually since 2014; possible collaboration in enhancing supply chains in developing countries; and the importance of Ukraine reconstruction, World Bank evolution, and development finance mobilization.

With IMF Managing Director Georgieva, President Tanaka conferred on the current global economy, debt distress in developing countries, green finance, and the advantages of using digital technology to address domestic resource mobilization.

At his meeting with IDB President Goldfajn, they exchanged views on the multi-layered collaborative relationship between JICA and IDB, demonstrated through their co-financing scheme Cooperation for Economic Recovery and Social Inclusion (CORE) in the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) region, as well as their co-financing for the private sector.

Lastly, with USAID Administrator Power, President Tanaka confirmed that the two parties will strengthen their partnership in the Indo-Pacific, including Pacific Island Countries and Central Asia, and will work together toward the recovery of Ukraine while supporting its neighboring countries.