Japan and Switzerland have many similarities: few natural resources and aging populations, a culture of precision and solidarity, and an economy based on service, knowledge and technology.

Both have placed the emphasis on knowledge and technology based economies. The two countries make considerable investments in research, development and innovation in order to maintain their competitiveness in the global market. Both have highly developed and internationally recognized education systems and research environment. This is made evident in the 2007 World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report, where in regard to innovation, Switzerland is second, and Japan ranked fourth. In the 2007 European Innovation Scoreboard, Japan and Switzerland are designated “Innovation Leaders”.

Under the Japanese system, the following is the science and technology policy administration of Japan. You can view the entire organigram of the Japanese Government here:

•   Japanese Goverment

National policies for science and technology are formulated in the Cabinet Office, which includes:

•  Minister of State for Science and Technology Policy 
•  Council for Science and Technology Policy (CSTP) 

The followings are the ministries implementing R&D in Japan.

•  Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT)
•  Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI)
•  Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications
•  Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
•  Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishery
•  Ministry of the Environment
•  Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport

 

Council for Science & Technology Policy (CSTP)

At the administrative reform in January 2001, the government upgraded the former Council for Science and Technology (CST) into the Council for Science and Technology Policy, and placed under the Cabinet Office. The Council is chaired by the Prime Minister, and consists of 14 members including cabinet members and distinguished individuals from various academic fields and industry.

Every five years, the Council discusses the basic policy about science and technology and based on those deliberations, the government formulates and decides a Science and Technology Basic Plan. Following the successful first and second basic plans, the Third Science and Technology Basic Plan for the five years period FY2006-FY2010 has started in April 2006.

Function of the Council:

• To deliberate issues regarding basic policies for the general and strategic promotion of S&T including social sciences,
• To determine resource allocation such as budgeting and human resource management, and other important issues related to the general promotion of science and technology,
• To evaluate important R&D items for the nation; and
• To submit opinions to the Prime Minister anytime.
  
  

For more information, please see  the Third Science and Technology Basic Plan.

 

National Research Institutes Affiliated with Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT)

•  Japan Science and Technology Corporation (JST) (Funding agency)
•  Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) (Funding agency)
•  The Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN)
•  High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK)
•  Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI)
•  Japan Marine Science & Technology Center (JAMSTEC)
•  Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA)
•  Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
•  National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ)
•  National Institute for Fusion Science (NIFS)
•  National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS)
•  National Institute of Genetics (NIG)
•  National Institute of Informatics (NII)
•  National Insitute of Polar Research (NIPR)
•  National Institute of Radiological Sciences (NIRS)
•  National Institute of Science and Technology Policy (NISTEP)
•  National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention (NIED)
•  Okazaki National Research Institutes
•  The Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS)
•  The Institute of Statistical Mathematics (ISM)
  
  

National Research Institutes Affiliated with Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI)

•  New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) (Funding Agency)
•  National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST)

          -  Research Centers
          -  Research Institutes
          -  Research Initiative 
          -  Research Bases

National Research Institutes Affiliated with Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC)

•  National Institute of Information and Communication Technology (NICT)

 

National Research Institute affiliated with Ministry of Environment

•  National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES)

 

National Research Institutes Affiliated with Ministry of Agriculture, Forest, and Fishery

•  National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO)
•  National Institute of Agrobiological Sciences (NIAS)
•  National Institute for Agro-Environmental Sciences (NIAES)
•  National Institute for Rural Engineering (NIRE)
•  Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute (FFPRI)
  
  

National Research Institute Affiliated with Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare

•  National Cancer Center (NCC)
•  National Cardiovascular Center (NCVC)
•  National Institute of Public Health (NIPH)
•  National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID)
  

You can search for a specific institute in the
 Institute Directory Database by Japan Science & Technology Corporation (JST)

 

Other links:

•  Science Portal Japan