Research Project (Ongoing)

Development Research Network

Emerging economies have become increasingly important actors in development cooperation, and interest in the development experiences and knowledge accumulated by Asian countries has continued to grow. Against this backdrop, Thailand and Japan marked the 70th anniversary of their development cooperation in 2024. For many years, Japan has supported Thailand in addressing its development challenges and, more recently, has promoted intellectual exchange and professional networking with Thai researchers and government officials through initiatives such as the JICA Chair Program and partnerships with universities. At the same time, both countries face common challenges, including population aging, regional disparities, and the strengthening of disaster resilience, underscoring the growing importance of learning from each other’s experiences as development partners.

At the same time, Thailand has expanded its development cooperation activities, particularly in the ASEAN and Mekong regions, through the Thailand International Cooperation Agency (TICA) and the Neighbouring Countries Economic Development Cooperation Agency (NEDA), building on its experience in trilateral cooperation with Japan. As an emerging development partner, Thailand is assuming an increasingly prominent role in the region. To leverage such regional cooperation in addressing shared challenges, including inclusive and sustainable growth, climate change, and regional connectivity, it is essential to draw on the experiences and knowledge of countries across the region and to generate knowledge and solutions that can serve as regional public goods. This requires a deeper understanding of the roles and distinctive characteristics of emerging development partners such as Thailand, as well as consideration of future forms of development cooperation that build on the knowledge and experiences accumulated by Japan.

In light of these developments, the JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development and Southeast Asia and Pacific Department (JICA) have launched the Development Research Network, a platform for sustained intellectual dialogue between Japanese and Thai researchers and practitioners. The Network aims to deepen research and discussion on development and development cooperation, institution- and policy-making, and human resource development based on Asia’s development experiences, while disseminating the resulting knowledge to the international community.

Through continuous dialogue and collaborative research among researchers and practitioners from both Japan and Thailand, the Network seeks to deepen understanding of Asia’s development experiences and to explore their implications for future development cooperation. It also aims to support the research activities of early-career researchers and disseminate their findings, thereby fostering the next generation of intellectual networks. Furthermore, by strengthening intellectual collaboration between Japan and Thailand and expanding research and practitioner networks across ASEAN over time, the Network seeks to contribute to new discussions on development cooperation and knowledge co-creation grounded in Asia’s development experiences.