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Private company

Japan International Cooperation Agency

Logo: https://www.jica.go.jp/english/publications/reports/annual/2017/c8h0vm0000bws721-att/2017_all.pdf, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons4

Governmental agency

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (Japanese: 独立行政法人国際協力機構, romanized: dokuritsu gyōseihōjin kokusai kyōryoku kikō), also known as JICA, is a governmental agency that delivers the bulk of Official Development Assistance (ODA) for the government of Japan. It is chartered with assisting economic and social growth in developing countries and promoting international cooperation.2 It employed 1,845 people in 2015.1 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1974Founded1
  • HeadquartersNibanchō, Japan1
  • Websitewww.jica.go.jp
  • Legal formstate organ, Specially designated public corporation1
  • Kind of organizationGovernment agency1
  • LEI254900XEIG78M2AJB0313
  • StatusActive3
  • LEI statusIssued and current3
  • Registered address二番町５番地２５, 102-0084 東京, Japan3
  • Registered withLegal Affairs Bureau, 0100-05-0144083

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JICA Center (Osaka, Japan)
Photo: Shubert Ciencia, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons6

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (Japanese: 独立行政法人国際協力機構, romanized: dokuritsu gyōseihōjin kokusai kyōryoku kikō), also known as JICA, is a governmental agency that delivers the bulk of Official Development Assistance (ODA) for the government of Japan. It is chartered with assisting economic and social growth in developing countries and promoting international cooperation. According to the OECD, Japan's total official development assistance (ODA) (US$17.5 billion, grant-equivalent methodology, preliminary data) increased in 2022 due to an increase in its bilateral lending, which included support to Ukraine. ODA represented 0.39% of gross national income (GNI). The OECD's Development Assistance Committee published a peer review of Japan's development cooperation in October 2020. JICA was led by Shinichi Kitaoka, the former President of the International University of Japan, from 2015 to 2022. On 1 April 2022, Professor Akihiko Tanaka assumed the presidency.2

Corporate structure

Japan International Cooperation Agency sits at the top of its group. 2 entities, 1 country on record. Switch between the flow chart and the network, and select any entity to see its details.

  • Japan International Cooperation Agency 東京, Japan
    • JICA Yokohama Center Subsidiary · Naka-ku, Japan

Built from parent and subsidiary links from GLEIF, the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (CC0); subsidiaries, stakes and holdings from Wikidata (CC0). Each entity in the chart links to its source.

The story

JICA was formed in 2003 as a result of a comprehensive overhaul of Japan's ODA. It is now one of the largest bilateral development organizations in the world, with a network of 97 overseas offices, projects in more than 150 countries, and available financial resources of approximately 1 trillion yen ($8.5 billion). JICA is responsible for administering Japan's grant aid, providing technical cooperation and concessional loans to developing countries, strengthening collaboration with international institutions, and contributing to global development strategies.

JICA has undergone an operational and organizational change in its country offices, placing greater emphasis on a field-based approach to programs/projects, decentralizing staff, and delegating increased authority from Tokyo headquarters to overseas offices, reducing bureaucracy, and fast-tracking programs/projects.

JICA's focus has shifted towards providing "human security" to local communities by strengthening grassroots programs, such as improving education and health projects.

In 2026, the agency was declared an "undesirable organization" in Russia.

Timeline

1954 Apr - Japan joined the Colombo Plan and initiated technical cooperation programs

1962 Jun - Overseas Technology Cooperation Agency (OTCA) established

1963 Jul - Japan Emigration Service (JEMIS) established

1965 Apr - Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JOCV) program launched

Read the full text

1974 Aug - OTCA and JEMIS merge to form the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)

1987 Sep - Disaster Relief Team formed

1989 - Total official development assistance (ODA) contributions exceed that of the United States to become the highest in the world

1990 Apr - Senior Cooperation Specialist (Senior Overseas Volunteer) dispatch program begun

2003 Oct - JICA established as an Independent Administrative Institution

Presidents

JICA's current and former presidents:

since 1 April 2022: Akihiko Tanaka

1 October 2015 – 31 March 2022: Shinichi Kataoka

30 March 2012 – 1 October 2015: Akihiko Tanaka

1 October 2003 – 30 March 2012: Sadako Ogata

From Wikipedia’s article on Japan International Cooperation Agency, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5

Subsidiaries and ownership

Subsidiaries

  • JICA Yokohama Center

From Wikidata.1

Employees over time

  • 20151,8451

Timeline

  1. 1974Founded Founded1

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

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