Identifier | Created | Classification | Origin |
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09TOKYO1306 | 2009-06-10 22:25:00 | UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY | Embassy Tokyo |
1. (SBU) Summary. The GOJ's FY09 supplemental budget includes an additional JPY 1.35 trillion ($13.5 billion) for science and technology. The majority of these funds will go to the Ministries of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), and Health, Labor, and Welfare (MHLW). The MEXT will establish a special fund to set up cutting-edge research centers and support young Japanese researchers. Science and technology programs at a number of GOJ ministries will receive funds. End Summary. 2. (SBU) The Japanese Government's supplemental budget for FY09 (April 2009-March 2010) includes additional science and technology-related outlays of JPY 1.35 trillion ($13.5 billion), roughly ten percent of the total package. The GOJ's regular FY09 S&T budget is JPY 3.56 trillion. Japan traditionally passes a supplemental budget to cover needed outlays not fully accounted for in the regular annual budget. This year's supplemental, however, is also designed to help provide additional stimulus to help Japan deal with the global economic situation. The April bill is the fourth stimulus measure the GOJ has implemented since summer 2008. The new bill's strong focus on science and technology reflects the GOJ view that S&T is vital to Japan's economic recovery. A total of JPY 656 billion, roughly half of the S&T supplemental budget, is allocated to the MEXT, followed by JPY 345 billion to the METI and JPY 231 billion to the MHLW. Establishment of Special Fund at JSPS -------------------------- 3. (SBU) Of the amount allocated to MEXT, JPY 300 billion (about USD 3 billion) will be transferred to a special fund established at the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS). The funds will be spent over five years from 2009 to 2013. Japanese government research budgets are typically allocated for just one fiscal year - a reality that researchers find difficult. To realize this new special fund, and the benefits it offers Japanese science, the government has sent a bill to the Diet amending the law governing the JSPS. 4. (U) The JSPS special fund will be dedicated to two, concurrent five-year programs. The first is a program to establish 30 cutting-edge research centers with a total of JPY 270 billion in funding. The GOJ's Council for Science and Technology Policy (CSTP) is developing the procedures for proposal solicitation, review mechanisms, and award management. The centers are likely to be managed by several funding agencies to which JSPS will transfer funds. Each center's award budget will total JPY 9 billion ($90 million) to be spent over five years. The second program will provide support for young Japanese researchers (graduate students, post docs, and beginning faculty) with JPY 30 billion in funding. The JSPS plans to send 15,000-30,000 outstanding young Japanese researchers to other countries. The details of the program are still under discussion at JSPS. Other S&T-related Budgets -------------------------- 5. (U) The following are a number of specific activities that will be supported by the ministries' supplemental funds. Ministry of Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT): - JPY 69.5 billion: Industry-university-government cooperative research centers in all 47 Japanese prefectures; - JPY 10 billion: Research on regenerative medicine using iPS (induced pluripotent stem cells); - JPY 10 billion: Infrastructure for the development, launch, and use of quasi-zenith satellites; earth observation satellites and extremely small satellites; - JPY 5 billion: Environmental technology development centers; - JPY 4 billion: Facilities for WPI (World Premier International) Centers; - JPY 4 billion: Marine resource exploration technology development; - JPY 0.5 billion: A new program to encourage companies to hire post-docs. To encourage Japanese companies to hire post-docs, MEXT will provide firms that hire post-docs with JPY 5 million ($50K) per position. TOKYO 00001306 002.2 OF 002 Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI): - JPY 31 billion: Advanced R&D facilities for nanotechnology, storage batteries, and solar panels; - JPY 29.5 billion: A marine resource exploration vessel; - JPY 20.5 billion: Low Carbon Society projects; - JPY 12.7 billion: Cool Earth (energy innovation/greenhouse gas reduction) projects; - JPY 4.8 billion: A coastal aqua-community project; - JPY 3.5 billion: Acceleration of Green IT projects; - JPY 3 billion: Biomass related projects; - JPY 2 billion: International cooperative R&D on innovative solar energy and hydrogen storage. Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW): - JPY 127.9 billion: Development and production of vaccines for new strains of influenza; - JPY 75.3 billion: Development of pharmaceuticals for cancer and children's diseases; - JPY 12 billion: Medical centers to address issues of national priority (induced pluripotent stem cell (iPS) applications, regenerative medicine, innovative medical equipment, innovative biopharmaceuticals, R&D on cancer, cardiovascular diseases, neurological and mental diseases, incurable and rare diseases); - JPY 4.2 billion: Accelerating the review process for approving medicines; - JPY 2.9 billion: Subsidies for research on government-designated diseases; - JPY 2.1 billion: International Medical Center of Japan; - JPY 1.7 billion: National Institute for Sciences; - JPY 1.4 billion: National Cancer Center. Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC): - JPY 38.9 billion: Strengthening R&D facilities for information and communication technologies; - JPY 10 billion: Accelerating priority R&D programs in information and communication technologies. Ministry of Agriculture, Forests and Fisheries (MAFF): - JPY 19.3 billion: Creation of industries that make use of locally available resources; - JPY 8.2 billion: Soil science research; - JPY 4.0 billion: Research on Japanese cedar pollen syndrome, commercialization of genetically modified silkworms, low-cost, high-yield rice at the National Institute of Agro-biological Sciences; - JPY 3.4 billion: Facilities for research on preventing global warming at the Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute; - JPY 2.7 billion: Energy-conserving fishing boats and genome analysis at the Fisheries Research Agency; - JPY 1.8 billion: Analysis and use of genetic information to accelerate the production of new varieties, including low-cost, high-yield rice at the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization; - JPY 0.6 billion: Development of technologies for biomass utilization. ZUMWALT |