Why Does the Quality of Growth Matter? Director Tambo Shares at JIRCAS Symposium

JICA Research Institute Director Ichiro Tambo gave the keynote speech at the international symposium "Why 'Quality'Matters in International Agriculture Research."

The symposium was hosted by the Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences (JIRCAS) on October 28, 2015, at the U Thant International Conference Hall in Tokyo.

In his keynote lecture on why the quality of growth matters, Tambo pointed out some remaining challenges. "There are still more than one billion people living in extreme poverty and domestic and global economic disparity is widening. Further, development problems are increasingly complex and global." Tambo addressed the differences between the SDGs and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which had a deadline for achievement in 2015. He explained that not only developing countries, but all U.N. member states had pledged their commitment to achieving 17 SDGs and 169 targets by 2030.

Tambo underlined the importance of three aspects included in the Development Cooperation Charter-"inclusiveness," "sustainability" and "resilience"—which, along with innovation, are concepts vital to achievement of "Quality Growth," and presented some examples of JICA's such cooperation.

Tambo explained the relationship between "Quality" and "Quantity."

"It is not about a trade-off between quantity and quality. We must aim for a balance of both quantity and quality. The Development Cooperation Charter advocates "Quality Growth" that maintains growth and quality, and poverty eradication through such growth. Theorizing "Quality Growth" is now an important research topic for our institute."

The Symposium also provided sessions on themes such as "Researches for climate-resilient and sustainable agriculture," "Approaches to enhance stable food production and consumption in Africa" and "Evaluation of the various uses of indigenous resources and establishment of value chains in Asia."