1. Introduction
It is a great honor to have been elected the Development Committee Chair. I would like to pay tribute to Chair Svantesson of Sweden for her leadership in having guided the Committee’s discussions. I also would like to contribute to solving development challenges with the cooperation of all Development Committee members, by steering open and constructive discussion.
Japan conveys its deepest condolences to the victims and their families severely affected by the Ebola outbreak in Africa, the earthquakes in Venezuela and Colombia, the flash floods near the Nepal-China border, floods in Thailand occurred last month, and other disasters and crises around the world.
The world continues to face geopolitical crises, including the situation in the Middle East, as well as heightened global economic uncertainty.
In addition to near-term challenges, we must address longer-term development issues including poverty, health, debt, natural disasters, and supply chain resilience. Against this backdrop, Japan hereby states its expectations for the role to be played by the World Bank Group (WBG) in addressing the challenges developing countries face, as well as its own contributions to the WBG.
2. Enhancing the Functions and Roles of the WBG
As development challenges become increasingly diverse and complex, maximizing development impact is important, given limited resources. In this regard, Japan welcomes the progress made in enhancing collaboration across WBG institutions under the One WBG approach. We also look forward to the WBG Knowledge Bank facilitating the sharing and leverage of knowledge to help countries address their development challenges. Strengthening WBG governance also remains important, and we look forward to the contributions of Vice President Keicho, who assumed office earlier this month. Furthermore, mobilizing private capital alongside public resources is essential to delivering support in a more efficient and effective manner. We support further strengthening the roles of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) in supporting the private sector and achieving greater development impact.
To address development challenges effectively and efficiently, it is essential that multilateral development banks (MDBs), including the WBG, function as a system.
Japan welcomes the joint MDB statement supporting critical minerals value chains and stable fertilizer supply as initiatives to build resilient supply chains through MDB cooperation. We also welcome the conclusion of the Full Mutual Reliance Framework (FMRF) between the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in July this year, following the World Bank’s earlier framework with the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and look forward to the development of concrete projects under these frameworks.
Japan welcomes progress in the Procurement Change Program, including the introduction of rated criteria and efforts to diversify sources of suppliers. Quality-based procurement that takes life-cycle costs into account can enhance development impact and sustainability in borrowing countries. We encourage further efforts, including proactive market outreach and capacity building for procurement professionals, and expect the WBG to play a leading role in advancing procurement reform across MDBs.
For efficient and effective support, it is also important that the WBG better incorporate the voices of developing countries in its operations. We therefore look forward to the steady implementation of the voice reforms agreed under the 2025 Shareholding Review. Further efforts are needed to identify and address the challenges faced by developing countries, especially smallest poor countries, in fulfilling their commitments under the 2018 Capital Increase agreement.
3. Addressing Development Challenges Prioritized by Japan
Japan hereby elaborates on the priorities to which Japan attaches particular importance, as well as its expectations for the WBG in these policy areas.
(1) Critical minerals
The diversification and strengthening of critical mineral supply chains, including rare earths, are essential not only for enhancing the resilience of the global economy, but also for creating quality jobs and supporting sustainable economic development in developing countries.
In this regard, we welcome the World Bank Group’s efforts to formulate country specific strategies and deepen its engagement in the critical minerals sector. Building on such efforts, it will be essential to translate analytical and strategic work into tangible investments on the ground. To support this objective, Japan established a new funding window, RISE+, under the World Bank Group’s Japanese Trust Fund in June this year, with an initial contribution of US$20 million.
To complement RISE and RISE+ and further promote private capital mobilization, it is also important to strengthen guarantee and risk-sharing functions. In this regard, Japan welcomes the effort by MIGA to enhance its guarantee function for critical minerals projects. Japan actively supports this effort and calls on other countries to join us in supporting this initiative.
(2) Global Health・Population Aging
Japan welcomes the World Bank’s continued efforts, in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), toward achieving universal health coverage (UHC). Achieving the World Bank’s goal of delivering quality, affordable health services to 1.5 billion people by 2030 requires countries to identify their own priorities and build sustainable health financing systems through close collaboration between finance and health authorities. Japan will continue to support country-led efforts based on strong country ownership.
As part of these efforts, Japan expects the UHC Knowledge Hub, which Japan launched jointly with the World Bank and WHO last year, to expand opportunities for peer learning and knowledge sharing among finance and health officials, thereby
accelerating countries’ efforts to advance health financing reforms. Japan will once again host the UHC High-Level Forum 2026 in Tokyo on December 12 this year. The Forum will provide an opportunity to showcase the achievements and lessons learned by the first cohort countries, as well as the commitments of the second cohort countries to the training program.
In addition, strengthening human capital through investments in maternal and child health and nutrition is essential for achieving UHC. From this perspective, Japan announces a pledge of USD 40 million to the Global Financing Facility (GFF) in the first year of its new five-year strategy. Japan will strengthen collaboration between the GFF and the UHC Knowledge Hub, leveraging their strong complementarity, to translate the knowledge and experiences gained through the UHC Knowledge Hub’s training program into concrete actions at the country level.
Further strengthening pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response (PPR) for future health emergencies remains essential. Japan looks forward to progress of the Mid-Term Review of the Pandemic Fund and will continue to work closely with relevant partners.
Population aging is a global challenge with significant implications for economic growth, labor markets, fiscal sustainability, and social protection systems. As many systems were originally designed on the assumption of continued population growth, countries are required to take forward-looking actions to ensure their sustainability. On the other hand, aging is not merely a cost associated with rising social expenditures and fiscal burdens, but can also be an opportunity to foster new private sector development, and, in turn, economic growth, job creation, and productivity gains when supported by appropriate policies. From this perspective, Japan supports the WBG's efforts to strengthen its work on addressing population aging.
As one of the first countries to experience a rapidly aging society, Japan has developed a “Longevity Ecosystem” model that integrates institutional reforms, the promotion of employment among older persons, market creation, and the utilization of technology. Going forward, Japan will continue to share its experience and expertise and contribute to the development of practical policy solutions through institutional reforms, market creation, the promotion of private investment, and the application of technology and innovation.
(3) Disaster risk management, infrastructure and energy
The significant damage caused by frequent natural disasters underscores the importance of disaster risk management and resilient, high-quality infrastructure. Japan has been working to mainstream disaster risk management in development through the Japan–World Bank Program on Disaster Risk Management, including support for building disaster-resilient infrastructure, as well as to promote urban development that leverages the knowledge and lessons learned from Japan’s experience with natural disasters through the Tokyo Development Learning Center (TDLC). Japan remains committed to such collaboration with the WBG.
For global energy security, it is essential to ensure free and transparent energy trade, strengthen international cooperation on strategic petroleum reserves, and enhance collaboration between energy-producing and energy-consuming countries. To this end, Japan has been formulating a comprehensive cooperation plan aimed at strengthening the economic and energy resilience of the Gulf countries in the Middle East. In addition, under the framework of Partnership on Wide Energy and Resources Resilience Asia (POWERR Asia), Japan has been working through JICA and JBIC since this April to provide emergency responses to countries facing fuel supply shortages, particularly in Asia and the Pacific, and to support structural responses such as increasing crude oil stockpiling capacity and diversifying energy sources. To further reinforce these efforts, Japan is advancing its collaboration with the WBG through DRIVE (Dynamic Response for Invigorating Value Chains and Energy Security) and with the ADB through ACCEL (Action for Creating Energy Security for Long-term Resilience). As the first project under DRIVE, IFC and JICA will jointly support the energy transition across South and Southeast Asia, while the first project under ACCEL will support a green ammonia project in India.
(4) Debt issues and domestic resource mobilization
Ensuring debt transparency is a vital element in enabling borrowing countries to maintain stable macroeconomic and fiscal management. In this regard, we welcome the progress made in the G20 discussions toward expanding participation in the World Bank's Data Sharing Exercise (DSE). We appreciate the World Bank's development of internal confidentiality protocol aimed at addressing concerns over data confidentiality. In light of this progress, Japan once again urges all G20 members to participate in the World Bank's DSE. Japan will also continue to actively provide technical assistance for enhancing debt transparency. As part of these efforts, we look forward to further progress in the initiative being implemented by the World Bank and Japan in Indonesia on the automated real-time reconciliation of creditor and debtor data, expecting its benefits to ultimately extend to other countries.
With regard to debt restructuring, official bilateral creditors should work in a coordinated manner to promote more timely restructuring processes. In this regard, we welcome the publication of the Common Framework MoU template. Going forward, to further enhance the timeliness and comparability, we should also publish MoUs agreed in individual debt treatment cases. Debt restructuring for middle-income countries should also be implemented in line with the Common Framework. We look forward to the World Bank and the IMF taking the lead in advancing this discussion.
Strengthening domestic resource mobilization (DRM) in a manner that respects developing countries’ ownership is an urgent challenge for developing countries to build the foundations for sustainable economic growth and promote investment.
Building on the discussions at the Tax and Development Conference held in Tokyo in March, which focused on DRM, we place importance on continued support tailored to the needs of recipient countries, including those in the Asia-Pacific region. We encourage the WBG and the IMF, in their efforts to strengthen DRM support, to enhance collaboration with international organizations, including the OECD and the ADB, to provide effective support.
(5) Pacific Island countries and Small States Strategy
Achieving resilient and inclusive economic development in Pacific Island countries (PICs) requires continued support tailored to the region-specific challenges faced by each country. In this regard, Japan welcomes the efforts to develop the WBG’s Small States Strategy.
The maintenance of correspondent banking relationships (CBR) in the region remains critical for financial inclusion and economic activity. With regard to the WBG’s CBR Project, Japan is advancing discussions with the United States, Australia, and New Zealand to support the establishment of the Pacific Payment Mechanism (PPM) as a medium- to long-term solution. Going forward, Japan will continue to work closely with the WBG and lead discussions with PICs, development partners, and international organizations to advance the early implementation of practical solutions, including through exploring the potential use of digital payments.
As natural disasters in the region have become increasingly frequent and severe in recent years, strengthening disaster risk financing is essential to enhance fiscal resilience. From this perspective, in July, in cooperation with the World Bank and ADB, Japan provided a yen loan to the Solomon Islands that incorporates a Climate Resilient Debt Clause (CRDC), marking the first time Japan has included such a clause in its lending.
4. Ukraine
Russia’s aggression against Ukraine is an outrageous act that shakes the very foundation of the international order. Achieving a just and lasting peace as soon as possible is of utmost importance, and Japan remains committed to providing further support to Ukraine in collaboration with like-minded partners.
Through the IMF program, Japan expects Ukraine to implement varied reforms steadily, including domestic resource mobilization through VAT reform, as well as anticorruption measures, aiming for the success of the next review.
The scale of Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction needs remains immense. Mobilizing private capital, technology, and expertise will be essential to meet these needs. We encourage the WBG to continue supporting Ukraine’s reform efforts and to steadily advance preparations for future reconstruction, through guarantees, project development, and other instruments.
Beyond Ukraine, supporting countries affected by fragility, conflict, and violence (FCV) remains a major development priority, and we support the WBG’s continued engagement in this area.
5. Concluding Remarks
Japan commends the WBG and the IMF, under the leadership of President Banga and Managing Director Georgieva respectively, for continuing to address the ever complicated global development challenges, including through close collaboration
with other institutions. We also wish to express our deep appreciation to Akihiko Nishio, who recently stepped down as Vice President of the WBG, for his outstanding contributions over more than three decades of service to the World Bank, including his leadership in successfully delivering three replenishments of the International Development Association (IDA). Japan will continue to support the efforts of both institutions, including through human resource contributions. As the Development Committee Chair, I look forward to working closely with all members to contribute to the further development of the global economy through the WBG and the IMF.
End
It is a great honor to have been elected the Development Committee Chair. I would like to pay tribute to Chair Svantesson of Sweden for her leadership in having guided the Committee’s discussions. I also would like to contribute to solving development challenges with the cooperation of all Development Committee members, by steering open and constructive discussion.
Japan conveys its deepest condolences to the victims and their families severely affected by the Ebola outbreak in Africa, the earthquakes in Venezuela and Colombia, the flash floods near the Nepal-China border, floods in Thailand occurred last month, and other disasters and crises around the world.
The world continues to face geopolitical crises, including the situation in the Middle East, as well as heightened global economic uncertainty.
In addition to near-term challenges, we must address longer-term development issues including poverty, health, debt, natural disasters, and supply chain resilience. Against this backdrop, Japan hereby states its expectations for the role to be played by the World Bank Group (WBG) in addressing the challenges developing countries face, as well as its own contributions to the WBG.
2. Enhancing the Functions and Roles of the WBG
As development challenges become increasingly diverse and complex, maximizing development impact is important, given limited resources. In this regard, Japan welcomes the progress made in enhancing collaboration across WBG institutions under the One WBG approach. We also look forward to the WBG Knowledge Bank facilitating the sharing and leverage of knowledge to help countries address their development challenges. Strengthening WBG governance also remains important, and we look forward to the contributions of Vice President Keicho, who assumed office earlier this month. Furthermore, mobilizing private capital alongside public resources is essential to delivering support in a more efficient and effective manner. We support further strengthening the roles of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) in supporting the private sector and achieving greater development impact.
To address development challenges effectively and efficiently, it is essential that multilateral development banks (MDBs), including the WBG, function as a system.
Japan welcomes the joint MDB statement supporting critical minerals value chains and stable fertilizer supply as initiatives to build resilient supply chains through MDB cooperation. We also welcome the conclusion of the Full Mutual Reliance Framework (FMRF) between the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in July this year, following the World Bank’s earlier framework with the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and look forward to the development of concrete projects under these frameworks.
Japan welcomes progress in the Procurement Change Program, including the introduction of rated criteria and efforts to diversify sources of suppliers. Quality-based procurement that takes life-cycle costs into account can enhance development impact and sustainability in borrowing countries. We encourage further efforts, including proactive market outreach and capacity building for procurement professionals, and expect the WBG to play a leading role in advancing procurement reform across MDBs.
For efficient and effective support, it is also important that the WBG better incorporate the voices of developing countries in its operations. We therefore look forward to the steady implementation of the voice reforms agreed under the 2025 Shareholding Review. Further efforts are needed to identify and address the challenges faced by developing countries, especially smallest poor countries, in fulfilling their commitments under the 2018 Capital Increase agreement.
3. Addressing Development Challenges Prioritized by Japan
Japan hereby elaborates on the priorities to which Japan attaches particular importance, as well as its expectations for the WBG in these policy areas.
(1) Critical minerals
The diversification and strengthening of critical mineral supply chains, including rare earths, are essential not only for enhancing the resilience of the global economy, but also for creating quality jobs and supporting sustainable economic development in developing countries.
In this regard, we welcome the World Bank Group’s efforts to formulate country specific strategies and deepen its engagement in the critical minerals sector. Building on such efforts, it will be essential to translate analytical and strategic work into tangible investments on the ground. To support this objective, Japan established a new funding window, RISE+, under the World Bank Group’s Japanese Trust Fund in June this year, with an initial contribution of US$20 million.
To complement RISE and RISE+ and further promote private capital mobilization, it is also important to strengthen guarantee and risk-sharing functions. In this regard, Japan welcomes the effort by MIGA to enhance its guarantee function for critical minerals projects. Japan actively supports this effort and calls on other countries to join us in supporting this initiative.
(2) Global Health・Population Aging
Japan welcomes the World Bank’s continued efforts, in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), toward achieving universal health coverage (UHC). Achieving the World Bank’s goal of delivering quality, affordable health services to 1.5 billion people by 2030 requires countries to identify their own priorities and build sustainable health financing systems through close collaboration between finance and health authorities. Japan will continue to support country-led efforts based on strong country ownership.
As part of these efforts, Japan expects the UHC Knowledge Hub, which Japan launched jointly with the World Bank and WHO last year, to expand opportunities for peer learning and knowledge sharing among finance and health officials, thereby
accelerating countries’ efforts to advance health financing reforms. Japan will once again host the UHC High-Level Forum 2026 in Tokyo on December 12 this year. The Forum will provide an opportunity to showcase the achievements and lessons learned by the first cohort countries, as well as the commitments of the second cohort countries to the training program.
In addition, strengthening human capital through investments in maternal and child health and nutrition is essential for achieving UHC. From this perspective, Japan announces a pledge of USD 40 million to the Global Financing Facility (GFF) in the first year of its new five-year strategy. Japan will strengthen collaboration between the GFF and the UHC Knowledge Hub, leveraging their strong complementarity, to translate the knowledge and experiences gained through the UHC Knowledge Hub’s training program into concrete actions at the country level.
Further strengthening pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response (PPR) for future health emergencies remains essential. Japan looks forward to progress of the Mid-Term Review of the Pandemic Fund and will continue to work closely with relevant partners.
Population aging is a global challenge with significant implications for economic growth, labor markets, fiscal sustainability, and social protection systems. As many systems were originally designed on the assumption of continued population growth, countries are required to take forward-looking actions to ensure their sustainability. On the other hand, aging is not merely a cost associated with rising social expenditures and fiscal burdens, but can also be an opportunity to foster new private sector development, and, in turn, economic growth, job creation, and productivity gains when supported by appropriate policies. From this perspective, Japan supports the WBG's efforts to strengthen its work on addressing population aging.
As one of the first countries to experience a rapidly aging society, Japan has developed a “Longevity Ecosystem” model that integrates institutional reforms, the promotion of employment among older persons, market creation, and the utilization of technology. Going forward, Japan will continue to share its experience and expertise and contribute to the development of practical policy solutions through institutional reforms, market creation, the promotion of private investment, and the application of technology and innovation.
(3) Disaster risk management, infrastructure and energy
The significant damage caused by frequent natural disasters underscores the importance of disaster risk management and resilient, high-quality infrastructure. Japan has been working to mainstream disaster risk management in development through the Japan–World Bank Program on Disaster Risk Management, including support for building disaster-resilient infrastructure, as well as to promote urban development that leverages the knowledge and lessons learned from Japan’s experience with natural disasters through the Tokyo Development Learning Center (TDLC). Japan remains committed to such collaboration with the WBG.
For global energy security, it is essential to ensure free and transparent energy trade, strengthen international cooperation on strategic petroleum reserves, and enhance collaboration between energy-producing and energy-consuming countries. To this end, Japan has been formulating a comprehensive cooperation plan aimed at strengthening the economic and energy resilience of the Gulf countries in the Middle East. In addition, under the framework of Partnership on Wide Energy and Resources Resilience Asia (POWERR Asia), Japan has been working through JICA and JBIC since this April to provide emergency responses to countries facing fuel supply shortages, particularly in Asia and the Pacific, and to support structural responses such as increasing crude oil stockpiling capacity and diversifying energy sources. To further reinforce these efforts, Japan is advancing its collaboration with the WBG through DRIVE (Dynamic Response for Invigorating Value Chains and Energy Security) and with the ADB through ACCEL (Action for Creating Energy Security for Long-term Resilience). As the first project under DRIVE, IFC and JICA will jointly support the energy transition across South and Southeast Asia, while the first project under ACCEL will support a green ammonia project in India.
(4) Debt issues and domestic resource mobilization
Ensuring debt transparency is a vital element in enabling borrowing countries to maintain stable macroeconomic and fiscal management. In this regard, we welcome the progress made in the G20 discussions toward expanding participation in the World Bank's Data Sharing Exercise (DSE). We appreciate the World Bank's development of internal confidentiality protocol aimed at addressing concerns over data confidentiality. In light of this progress, Japan once again urges all G20 members to participate in the World Bank's DSE. Japan will also continue to actively provide technical assistance for enhancing debt transparency. As part of these efforts, we look forward to further progress in the initiative being implemented by the World Bank and Japan in Indonesia on the automated real-time reconciliation of creditor and debtor data, expecting its benefits to ultimately extend to other countries.
With regard to debt restructuring, official bilateral creditors should work in a coordinated manner to promote more timely restructuring processes. In this regard, we welcome the publication of the Common Framework MoU template. Going forward, to further enhance the timeliness and comparability, we should also publish MoUs agreed in individual debt treatment cases. Debt restructuring for middle-income countries should also be implemented in line with the Common Framework. We look forward to the World Bank and the IMF taking the lead in advancing this discussion.
Strengthening domestic resource mobilization (DRM) in a manner that respects developing countries’ ownership is an urgent challenge for developing countries to build the foundations for sustainable economic growth and promote investment.
Building on the discussions at the Tax and Development Conference held in Tokyo in March, which focused on DRM, we place importance on continued support tailored to the needs of recipient countries, including those in the Asia-Pacific region. We encourage the WBG and the IMF, in their efforts to strengthen DRM support, to enhance collaboration with international organizations, including the OECD and the ADB, to provide effective support.
(5) Pacific Island countries and Small States Strategy
Achieving resilient and inclusive economic development in Pacific Island countries (PICs) requires continued support tailored to the region-specific challenges faced by each country. In this regard, Japan welcomes the efforts to develop the WBG’s Small States Strategy.
The maintenance of correspondent banking relationships (CBR) in the region remains critical for financial inclusion and economic activity. With regard to the WBG’s CBR Project, Japan is advancing discussions with the United States, Australia, and New Zealand to support the establishment of the Pacific Payment Mechanism (PPM) as a medium- to long-term solution. Going forward, Japan will continue to work closely with the WBG and lead discussions with PICs, development partners, and international organizations to advance the early implementation of practical solutions, including through exploring the potential use of digital payments.
As natural disasters in the region have become increasingly frequent and severe in recent years, strengthening disaster risk financing is essential to enhance fiscal resilience. From this perspective, in July, in cooperation with the World Bank and ADB, Japan provided a yen loan to the Solomon Islands that incorporates a Climate Resilient Debt Clause (CRDC), marking the first time Japan has included such a clause in its lending.
4. Ukraine
Russia’s aggression against Ukraine is an outrageous act that shakes the very foundation of the international order. Achieving a just and lasting peace as soon as possible is of utmost importance, and Japan remains committed to providing further support to Ukraine in collaboration with like-minded partners.
Through the IMF program, Japan expects Ukraine to implement varied reforms steadily, including domestic resource mobilization through VAT reform, as well as anticorruption measures, aiming for the success of the next review.
The scale of Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction needs remains immense. Mobilizing private capital, technology, and expertise will be essential to meet these needs. We encourage the WBG to continue supporting Ukraine’s reform efforts and to steadily advance preparations for future reconstruction, through guarantees, project development, and other instruments.
Beyond Ukraine, supporting countries affected by fragility, conflict, and violence (FCV) remains a major development priority, and we support the WBG’s continued engagement in this area.
5. Concluding Remarks
Japan commends the WBG and the IMF, under the leadership of President Banga and Managing Director Georgieva respectively, for continuing to address the ever complicated global development challenges, including through close collaboration
with other institutions. We also wish to express our deep appreciation to Akihiko Nishio, who recently stepped down as Vice President of the WBG, for his outstanding contributions over more than three decades of service to the World Bank, including his leadership in successfully delivering three replenishments of the International Development Association (IDA). Japan will continue to support the efforts of both institutions, including through human resource contributions. As the Development Committee Chair, I look forward to working closely with all members to contribute to the further development of the global economy through the WBG and the IMF.
End