Overview of SATREPS
(Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development)

1. Objectives of the program

SATREPS (Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development) is a Japanese government program that promotes international joint research targeting global issues. Global challenges cannot be met by a single country or region acting on its own, so engagement by the international community is essential. To address these issues, SATREPS combines official development assistance (ODA) with advanced science and technology from Japan, working through three- to five-year projects involving partnerships between researchers in Japan and researchers in developing countries. SATREPS projects are expected to lead to outcomes with potential for practical utilization, and to enhance research capacity in the developing country. The program is a collaboration between two Japanese government agencies: Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

2. Outline of the program

(1) Research Areas and Fields

-Environment and Energy 1
“Research contributing to the resolution of global-scale environmental issues”
-Environment and Energy 2
“Research contributing to energy systems for low carbon society”
- Bioresources
“Research contributing to sustainable utilization of bioresources”
-Natural Disaster Prevention
“Research on natural disaster prevention and mitigation measures attuned to the needs of developing countries”
-Infectious Diseases Control
“Research on measures to address infectious diseases control attuned to the needs of developing countries”
-Interdisciplinary
From FY2012, proposals for projects in these research areas and fields that extend over multiple fields of research are accepted as Interdisciplinary field projects.

(2) Research Period

Three to Five years (3-5 years)

(3) Expenses Covered

• - Research expenses (JST budget)
• Approximately 36 million yen per year per project (including indirect expenses)
• (Total research expenses covered during a five-year project: Approx. 180 million yen)
• - ODA (JICA budget)
• (Travel expenses between Japan and developing countries, travel expenses to invite researchers from developing countries, equipment procurement, on-site research activity costs, etc.)
• Approximately 60 million yen per year per project
• (Total ODA provided during a five-year project: Approx. 300 million yen)

(4) Countries Eligible for the Program

Countries eligible for the SATREPS program are listed in Appendix 1. The program focuses in particular on countries in Asia and Africa.

(5) Current Projects/Countries (as of May 31, 2012)

A total of 57 international joint research projects in 31 countries are currently in progress as SATREPS projects in Environment and Energy, Bioresources, Natural Disaster Prevention, and Infectious Diseases Control. Only two provisionally selected projects have not gone ahead: A Natural Disaster Prevention project provisionally selected in FY2009, and an Environment and Energy project in FY2011.