Interview With Visiting Fellow Purnendra Jain: Japan’s Development Cooperation in the Indo‑Pacific Through Regional Partnerships and the Way Forward

Japan’s official development assistance (ODA) has shaped economic development and regional cooperation across Asia for more than seven decades. In this interview, Purnendra Jain , Visiting Fellow at the JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development (JICA Ogata Research Institute) and Emeritus Professor at Adelaide University, reflects on the evolution of Japan’s development cooperation towards South Asia, the principles underlying the vision of a Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP), and the changing role of Japanese aid in a rapidly shifting global landscape. The interview was conducted by Seifudein Adem , Research Fellow at the JICA Ogata Research Institute.

Adem: How did your interest in Japan develop over the course of your academic career, and how did that eventually lead to your engagement with the JICA Ogata Research Institute?

Jain: My interest in Japan dates back to 1976. Since then, Japan has been at the center of my entire academic life. I began by studying Japan’s local and national politics, as well as foreign policy, before gradually turning to development cooperation. So in a way, ODA came rather late in my research journey.

My association with the Institute began over a decade ago. In 2013, Kato Hiroshi, who was then Director of the JICA Research Institute, invited me to join a project marking the 60th anniversary of Japan’s ODA. It was a fascinating initiative that brought together scholars to look at how Japan’s development assistance had evolved and where it might be headed in the broader global development landscape.

One major outcome of that project was the edited volume “Japan’s Development Assistance: Foreign Aid and the Post-2015 Agenda,” published in 2015. For my part, I contributed a chapter examining Japan’s foreign aid, institutional changes and shifts in policy directions over decades. Since then, I have continued collaborating with the Institute on additional research related to Japan’s engagement in the South Asian region, particularly India.

Adem: What insights emerged from your research on Japan’s development cooperation with South Asia?

Jain: Since I was appointed as a visiting fellow of the Institute, I have produced two working papers, both focusing on Japan’s aid to India, an area that was largely neglected in the literature examining Japan’s foreign aid. One paper explored what I call the “twin peaks” of Japan’s ODA to India. India was among Japan’s earliest aid recipients in the 1950s, and Japan’s assistance to India reached its first peak during that period. Over time, India’s relative importance declined for a variety of reasons. Then, from the 2010s, India once again emerged as a central partner for Japan’s development cooperation. This resurgence marks what I refer to as the second peak.

The second paper examined a highly symbolic and unprecedented initiative: the high-speed rail project in India. This is India’s first such system and the first overseas development of Japan’s Shinkansen technology. Agreed during Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s tenure, the project represents Japan’s largest-ever single-country ODA yen loan commitment, a scale of financing that underscores both the ambition and the strategic significance Japan attaches to its partnership with India. Beyond its technological and financial magnitude, the project highlights Japan’s broader approach to infrastructure-led development cooperation and its long-term engagement with India’s modernization.

Furthermore, in February 2026, the Institute published two more papers: “The Ties That Bind: Part 1 (1950s–1990s) Japan–South Asia Relations and Decades of Development Cooperation Partnership ” and “The Ties That Bind: Part 2 (2000–2024) Japan–South Asia Relations and Development Cooperation Partnership in the Twenty-first Century and in the Era of the Indo-Pacific .” These papers analyze Japan’s 70-year history of ODA and the strategic and political factors behind Japan’s strong focus on South Asia. They offer a comprehensive and updated account of Japan’s aid trajectory.

Adem: How has Japan’s ODA evolved over time, and what are some of its distinctive features?

Jain: Japan has a long history as a development donor. As a founding member of the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC) in the early 1960s, Japan initially concentrated its aid almost exclusively in Asia—up to 97 percent during the 1960s. As Japan’s global role expanded, its cooperation extended to other regions, including Africa and Latin America. Japan became the world’s largest aid donor in 1989.

A number of countries—South Korea and Singapore among them—“graduated” from ODA as their economies developed. Japan has likewise updated its development policy frameworks in response to evolving global and domestic conditions. An examination of the original ODA Charter of 1992, its revision in 2003, the Development Cooperation Charter of 2015, and the latest update in 2023 provides valuable insight into the changing directions of Japan’s development policy since the end of the Cold War.

While Japan provides grants and technical assistance, a long-standing hallmark of Japan’s ODA is its focus on infrastructure, primarily delivered through concessional loans. Another defining characteristic is the emphasis on self-help and a request-based approach, ensuring that projects reflect recipient government priorities.

Adem: The idea of a Free and Open Indo-Pacific, or FOIP, has become increasingly central to Japan’s foreign and development policies. What does FOIP mean, and what values does Japan seek to promote through it?

Jain: FOIP links the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean into a single strategic space. At its core, it aims to keep the region open, inclusive and connected, while promoting cooperation among Indo-Pacific nations.

A key principle is the rule of law and a rules-based international order—ensuring that regional relations are guided by shared norms, rather than by pressure or unilateralism. FOIP also emphasizes cooperation among countries that share similar principles and strategic interests—often referred to as like-minded countries. Grounded in transparency, accountability and institutional capacity building, Japan’s development cooperation—particularly in infrastructure and connectivity—contributes directly to these aims.

Adem: What strategic benefits does FOIP offer in a region with rising geopolitical tensions?

Jain: Even before FOIP was formally announced, the idea of integrating the Indian and Pacific Oceans was already being discussed, but FOIP formalized this broader regional vision. Japan’s partnerships with countries such as Vietnam, the Philippines and Indonesia illustrate how development cooperation supports both national growth and regional stability.

Cooperation among partners is becoming increasingly important as well. Japan and Australia, for example, both have deep ties with South Pacific countries, and their collaboration can play an important role in supporting development in those island states. With increasing involvement by regional and external actors, such partnerships are likely to become even more significant as the strategic environment continues to change.

Adem: How does Japan contribute to regional and cross-regional cooperation through its development partnerships, particularly between Asia and Africa?

Jain: For many years, Japan has supported economic growth and institutional capacity-building in Asia, and more recently in Africa. These efforts provide the foundations for deeper cooperation not only within each region but also across regions.

Adem: Building on that foundation, I believe there is substantial potential for countries in different regions to learn from one another. South Asia and Africa, in particular, share several structural similarities: both include countries at different stages of development, and both face challenges such as state weakness and institutional gaps. Drawing on earlier development experiences in Asia, countries can share practical lessons and complement one another’s strengths. This creates opportunities for South-South cooperation, where countries with more advanced capacities support others facing similar challenges.

Jain: Exactly, and this is where existing regional networks become highly relevant. For example, India’s strong economic and diaspora ties in Africa offer promising entry points for such cooperation. Building on these people-to-people and economic linkages, India also operates a formal platform for engaging with Africa, called the India-Africa Forum Summit, much like Japan’s TICAD framework. If Japan and India coordinate more closely—especially in specific countries such as Tanzania or Ethiopia—their cooperation could evolve into triangular cooperation and become highly effective. Of course, such collaboration needs to be concrete and targeted in order to succeed.

In this sense, Japan’s development programs are well-positioned to facilitate cross-regional knowledge exchange, enabling countries to learn from each other’s experiences while strengthening partnerships across regions.

Adem: What conditions would enable Japan’s ODA to play a role in Africa similar to its role in Asia?

Jain: The key issue is absorptive capacity. Development cooperation is not only about providing financial resources. Countries must have the ability to absorb those resources and use them effectively. This is particularly important when we talk about infrastructure development. Countries must have the institutional capacity to plan, manage and implement large-scale projects. Even with ample funding, weak institutional capacity can severely limit impact. Therefore, development cooperation should combine financing with efforts to build administrative and institutional capacities.

Africa is increasingly important for Japan’s ODA. Over the years, Japan has supported infrastructure development and other development initiatives across the continent. As African nations continue to develop their capacity to absorb and manage development assistance, I believe there will be greater opportunities for expanding cooperation and investment.

Japan can make a meaningful contribution by drawing on its long-standing experience in Asia—not only by supporting infrastructure and capacity building, but also by fostering cross‑regional learning that helps countries address common challenges. In doing so, Japan can help shape more resilient and sustainable development pathways across the region.

Adem: Thank you very much for your valuable insights. We look forward to the continued progress of your research.