An Issue for Effective Utilization by Japanese Consulting Firms of the Outputs of International Development Studies

Abstract

The environment for development cooperation in developing countries has been changing rapidly. Governance and management issues have become the central focal point of development assistance. Increasingly, priority is being explicitly shifted from conventional economic infrastructure to poverty and social development. Participatory and holistic approaches are more widely introduced and donor coordination is being promoted.

Japanese consulting firms have been mainly dependent on Japan's Official Development Assistance (ODA) as source of revenue as well as information, and lack strategic knowledge management that would give them an edge in the international development cooperation society. The lack of motivation and strategies to develop their own systems is due to various internal and external factors, such as low motivation of top management, lack of incentives for individual consultants, and lack of proper mechanisms within and outside the firms. The lack of interchanges among academicians/researchers and practitioners is also a constraint to improving the quality of necessary information and knowledge.

This paper also explains the current trends in international development assistance. It provides an overview of Japan's experience in ODA projects in the fields of infrastructure and urban development. Based on the lessons learned from this experience, future directions for establishing a knowledge base for the benefit of Japanese ODA and the role of consulting firms are suggested.