Top JICA foreign contractors 2016-2018

Although Japan is the fourth largest donor worldwide — delivering $14.17 billion in official development assistance in 2018 — little is known about the data on its contract awards and how it works. To bridge this gap, Devex has analyzed the Japan International Cooperation Agency’s foreign contractors between 2016 and 2018 to shed light on its funding trends and key partners. Most of Japan’s development contracting is still awarded to Japan-based organizations. Here’s a look at which foreign partners are working with JICA and on what types of projects. Japan’s development cooperation Japan’s current aid policy is primarily based on the Development Cooperation Charter of 2015 — a set of guiding principles redirecting its aid priorities to boost its role in international diplomacy and security. Japanese aid is increasingly centered on human security, targeting initiatives related to protecting and empowering individuals, as well as on self-reliance efforts, such as investments in human capital, institutions, and regulations. Although health and poverty alleviation are also delineated as focus areas, they are packaged around a narrative of inclusive and sustainable growth — something that has been criticized by civil society as too focused on growth alone, at the expense of attention to poverty alleviation. There are three main agencies. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for providing ODA and for dialogue with recipient governments, since this is mainly based on diplomatic and foreign relations. JICA is the primary agency responsible for the technical aspects of Japan’s bilateral aid. It provides support for socioeconomic development in lower-income countries through a flexible combination of technical cooperation, finance and investment cooperation, and grants. Only Japanese entities are eligible for grant aid for projects, although they may subcontract to foreign entities. Nonproject grant aid, grant aid for disaster relief, and grant assistance for grassroot projects, including procurement of goods and services, are open to non-Japanese entities. There is also a specialized institution for procurement — the Japan International Cooperation System — which ensures fair tendering procedures and proper management of operation and grant funds. JICA remains a key player for a lot of stakeholders in development and Devex tracks its activities on a regular basis. Geographic distribution of JICA contracts For more than 60 years, JICA has been active in almost 150 countries around the globe. Between 2016 and 2018 alone, it awarded thousands of contracts to foreign-based organizations, of which 40% were implemented in Asia. Afghanistan was the primary focus by contract value, with 78 contracts allocated to work there, amounting to $18.29 million. Next is Myanmar with 142 contracts, amounting to $10.83 million, and then Brazil with 44 contracts worth a total of $10.33 million. These contracts were mostly related to data collection and survey services, project management services, and procurement of goods. It is worth noting that most of the pipeline funding for Afghanistan went to the improvement of security services and government human resources, echoing the objectives of Afghanistan’s own development strategy — the “Transformation Decade” for 2015-2024 — which aims to improve its self-reliance in both security and development, in cooperation with the international community. Among the top recipient countries, Brazil is the only country from Latin America. The two countries have a partnership program that is active through 2021. Under the goals of this program, most contracts awarded to Brazilian contractors are for conducting fiscal training and seminars. In recent years, Japan’s support for development in Africa has also been increasing. Though infrastructure and economic development remain the top priorities for JICA, it has expanded to cover health and social development too — such as a 2018 contract awarded to MES Equipment Limited for the procurement of consumables and reagents to enhance laboratory skills to fight infectious diseases in West Africa. Nature of the contracts Between 2016 and 2018, JICA awarded a total of 6,680 contracts. Of these, 2,972 contracts (44.5%) were awarded to foreign contractors and 3,708 contracts (55.5%) were awarded to Japan-based contractors. In total, foreign contractors received ¥25,648,624,863 ($241.1 million) of funding, whereas the Japan-based contractors received a total of around ¥172,664,098,376 ($1.6 billion). Thus, the average contract value for a Japan-based contractor is about five times larger than for a foreign contractor. One underlying reason for this is that individual contractors — as opposed to firms or organizations — are more prominent in the foreign contracts list versus Japan-based contracts. Of the contracts awarded to foreign contractors, 17% went to individuals. For the Japan-based contracts, only 2.4% were awarded to individuals. Looking at the highest value contracts awarded to foreign contractors in 2018, the RCBC Realty Corporation won a ¥404,038,052 ($3.8 million) contract in the Philippines, titled “Overseas Office Space Lease Contract.” The next contract on the list is for industrial human resources training in Brazil with the value of ¥369,773,550 ($3.5 million) and will be implemented by Senai DF. The third contract is ¥341,513,759 ($3.2 million) for the development of irrigation facilities in Afghanistan, implemented by Peace Medical Services. Top 10 foreign contractors Beyond the high-value contracts list, Devex has identified the top 10 foreign contractors for 2016-2018, sorted by the number of awarded contracts. These contractors are mostly suppliers of goods and services local to the recipient country. Most of the contracts are for the purchase of equipment and vehicles, or implementation of a training program, whereas the contracts with the highest value as described above are mostly for project implementation, infrastructure development, office rentals, and improving security services. The top 10 contractors account for less than 2.4% of total contracts and only 3% of the total value awarded to foreign organizations. Those that won the most contracts are from the Latin America and Caribbean region and the Asia-Pacific region, respectively. 1. Machine - Technica Mexico SA de CV Number of contracts won, 2016-2018: 9 Value of contracts: ¥77,663,255 ($733,656) Largest contract: ¥13,623,838 ($128,173) Headquarters: Mexico This Mexican-origin corporation was founded in 2002, aiming to be a world leader in accelerated weathering and corrosion test solutions for the automotive, plastics, paints, and textiles industries, among others. All of the contracts won were related to the procurement of equipment for the development of the automotive industry and human resource development projects. 2. Cambodia Mine Action Center Number of contracts won, 2016-2018: 9 Value of contracts: ¥30,834,433 ($290,090) Largest contract: ¥9,558,829 ($89,968) Headquarters: Cambodia Established in 1992, CMAC is the leading demining organization in Cambodia. It has also engaged in south-south cooperation activities with the assistance of JICA and is supporting other countries dealing with landmines and unexploded ordnance. Most of the contracts implemented by CMAC are for conducting workshops for the mine action sector. 3. Toyota Kenya Limited Number of contracts won, 2016-2018: 8 Value of contracts: ¥61,086,628 ($574,947) Largest contract: ¥13,970,422 ($131,490) Headquarters: Kenya Toyota Kenya Limited is the sole distributor and service provider of Toyota, Yamaha, Hino, and Case IH brands in Kenya. The vehicles procured will be used for JICA’s Smallholder Horticulture Empowerment and Promotion Project for Local and Up-scaling (or SHEP PLUS) and for the Capacity Development Project for Sustainable Forest Management in Kenya. 4. United Nations Development Programme Number of contracts won, 2016-2018: 7 Value of contracts: ¥627,104,286 ($5,902,306) Largest contract: ¥204,085,868 ($1,920,856) Headquarters: United States Present in about 170 countries and territories, UNDP works to eradicate poverty while protecting the planet. It helps countries develop strong policies, skills, partnerships, and institutions to sustain progress. The contracts between UNDP and JICA are for the capacity building of national police and for project implementation and monitoring services. 5. National Electric Power Co. Number of contracts won, 2016-2018: 7 Value of contracts: ¥146,445,761 ($1,378,348) Largest contract: ¥49,850,235 ($469,091) Headquarters: Jordan National Electric Power Company operates as an electricity transmission and distribution company in Jordan. In January 2015, JICA and the Jordanian government began a master plan study for the electricity sector in Jordan. NEPCO together with the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources and the Energy and Minerals Regulatory Commission will cooperate with JICA to conduct the study. NEPCO will conduct capacity building and technical skills improvement workshops. 6. CFAO Motors Senegal Number of contracts won, 2016-2018: 7 Value of contracts: ¥58,003,659 ($545,814) Largest contract: ¥9,674,720 ($91,039) Headquarters: Senegal CFAO Motors Senegal is the Senegalese subsidiary company of the CFAO Automotive Group, the leading automotive distribution network in Africa and the French overseas territories. The vehicles procured will be used for the Smallholder Horticulture Empowerment & Promotion Approach and the Project on Improvement of Rice Productivity for Irrigation Schemes of the Valley of Senegal. 7. Sediqi Security Services Number of contracts won, 2016-2018: 6 Value of contracts: ¥688,842,277 ($6,482,006) Largest contract: ¥227,463,795 ($2,140,434) Headquarters: Afghanistan Sediqi Security Services was established in 2006 and offers a wide range of security services such as security training, providing armored vehicles, intelligence reporting, and GPS tracking systems. Sediqi Security Services provided professional security services for JICA's projects and offices in Afghanistan, Indonesia, and Uzbekistan. 8. Wagtech Project Limited Number of contracts won, 2016-2018: 6 Value of contracts: ¥28,337,590 ($265,628) Largest contract: ¥8,284,794 ($77,952) Headquarters: United Kingdom Wagtech Projects is one of the U.K.’s largest independent manufacturers and suppliers of scientific testing and laboratory equipment. Wagtech Projects Limited will provide assistance to JICA’s Africa-ai-Japan Project, an initiative that started in June 2014 with the aim of promotion of innovative research by harnessing local knowledge, resources, experiences, and expertise to meet the developmental needs of Africa. 9. PricewaterhouseCoopers Pvt. Ltd. Number of contracts won, 2016-2018: 6 Value of contracts: ¥56,072,583 ($527,587) Largest contract: ¥36,138,430 ($339,701) Headquarters: United Kingdom PwC is one of the world’s largest providers of assurance, tax, and business consulting services. In 2018, PwC supported the project implementation of the Gujarat Investment Promotion Program, relieving the bottlenecks for foreign businesses wishing to do business in India. Other contracts awarded to PwC were for accounting, payroll management, and data collection survey services. 10. RMA Construcoes Eireli Number of contracts won, 2016-2018: 6 Value of contracts: ¥138,130,844 ($1,299,673) Largest contract: ¥51,089,364 ($480,670) Headquarters: Brazil Founded in 2016, RMA Construcoes Eireli is a construction company based in Brazil. The contracts won by RMA Construcoes Eireli are mostly repair or construction works for the Biodiversity Conservation project. Maja Wisenberger, senior development analyst, supervised and contributed to this article. Devex Analytics is a team of analysts and data scientists, delivering actionable solutions on development issues through structured datasets, official reports, press releases, and community-sourced information. Do you have questions about our methodology or analysis? Reach out to our experts at analysts@devex.com.