Requests for cooperation are constantly made to the NPA from countries all over the world in the field of governance; particularly in personnel administration. The NPA in turn carries out training courses in Japan for foreign government officials based on Official Development Assistance (ODA) and other plans, dispatches experts overseas, provides support for foreign government officials visiting for the purposes of surveys and research, engages in full-fledged exchanges with administrative organizations in foreign countries, and carries out investigation and research for foreign civil service systems.
1.   China-Japan-Korea Personnel Policy Network
    The National Personnel Authority of Japan, the Ministry of Personnel of the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of Korea Civil Service Commission concluded a Memorandum of Understanding concerning the “China-Japan-Korea Personnel Policy Network” at the Heads of Personnel Authorities Meeting in January, 2005 and conducted various cooperation programs such as the Joint Symposium, Joint Study, Mutual Information and Personnel Exchanges, based on the first and the second Cooperation Plan decided at the annual Director-General Level Meetings.
 
Korean Government Officials Development Program
    At the request of the Government of the Republic of Korea, the NPA conducted the “Korean Government Officials Development Program 2006” at the director and assistant director level, in order to deepen their experiences and the understanding of Japanese culture and society as well as to promote cooperation between Japan and Korea in the field of public administration. In FY2006, 20 officials participated in this program for about two weeks from November 20 to December 1.
 
2.   International Cooperation Activities conducted by the NPA
(1) Training courses for foreign government officials

Mr. Harubumi Kozawa, Commissioner of the NPA, greeting participants of the Seminor on Governmental Human Resource Management for Senior Officials. (September, 2006)
    As part of technical assistance for many countries, the NPA is conducting courses for government personnel of various countries with the cooperation of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and other organizations, aiming at the contribution of development and improvement of the government personnel administration systems of these countries. The NPA conducted the following six training courses in FY2006.
Training Course

 Main Contents Number of
Participants/
Countries,
Duration
Training Course in
Human Resource
Management		 Seminar on Governmental
Human Resource Manage- ment for Senior Officials		 Personnel management of Japan and improvement of personnel administration in developing countries 6/5
About 4 weeks
Seminar on Public Personnel Administration for Middle Level Officials Personnel management of Japan and improvement of personnel administration in developing countries 11/9
About 4 weeks
Training Course in
National Government Administration		 Seminar on National
Government Administration
for Senior Officials		 The role of public administration to contribute to the socioeconomic development of the country. 6/5
About 6 weeks
Training Course for
Individual Countries 		Seminar on Governmental
Human Resource
Management for Officials of
Viet Nam		 Japanese civil service systems and practices 8/1
2 weeks
Seminar on Governmental
Human Resource
Management for Officials of
Islamic Republic of Iran 		Governmental human resource management in Japan 8/1
2 weeks
Seminar for Russian Officials National Civil Service and Personnel Management 10/1
2 weeks
(2) The Mike Mansfield Fellowship Program
   This program aims to foster US Federal Government officials with in-depth understanding of Japan and furthermore to promote professional relationships of cooperation between the two countries by providing opportunities for the personnel dispatched to Japan under the US law to get a chance to train in Japanese government organizations.
   Fellows, who received intensive training in Washington D.C. for a year in Japanese language, politics, economy, and culture, have been placed at the Cabinet Office and each Ministry of the Japanese Government to serve as fellows. The NPA arranges the fellows’ placements at the Cabinet Office and each Ministry, sets up and implements common programs such as orientation, study tours, and participation in administrative training by the National Institute of Public Administration and strives to implement this program more effectively, in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the other Ministries including the Cabinet Office.
   The Japanese Government accepted five fellows in the tenth group for a one-year program (from September 2005 to August 2006) in Japan.
(3) Dispatch of Experts
   The NPA dispatches experts in personnel administration at the request of developing countries, in cooperation with JICA, in order to support the reform and improvement of the administration and civil service systems in those countries.
   In March 2007, the NPA dispatched 2 experts to the government of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam.
 
3.   Meeting with Visitors from Abroad
    In tandem with the increase in exchange and information interchange between nations in the field of administration and the civil service system in recent years, the number of foreigners visiting the NPA has increased. In FY2005, 305 people from 31 countries and regions visited the NPA for research and study. The NPA strives to develop a relationship by exchanging views about the present state of and issues regarding personnel administration, and also to introduce the Japanese civil service system and characteristics of personnel management.
   The following visitors have been accepted thus far in FY2006.
 
(1) Courtesy Call and Exchange of Opinions
  Visitors
2006 7/2
 Ms. Romanowski, Deputy Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of State
12/6 Regular Member of the South Korean Appeal Review Committee
12/12 Deputy Director, Agency of Kyrgyz Republic on Civil Service Affairs
2007 1/22 President of the National Authority for Public Service
 
(2) Investigation and Research
  Visiting Party (Name/Country/No. of Visitors) Content
2006
5/22
 Youth Invitation Program/Malaysia/22 The Role of the NPA and the National Civil Service System in Japan
5/23 Senior and fellow researchers from Seoul National University’s Anticorruption System Research Center/Korea/2 The Ethics System of National Public Employees in Japan
6/16 Trainees and company from the Bangladesh Public Administration Training Centre (BPATC)/Bangladesh/15 The Civil Service System in Japan, The Role of the NPA
7/26 Youth Invitation Program/Bangladesh/15 Treatment of National Public Employees and Personnel Administration in Japan
8/2 Youth Invitation Program/Malaysia/22 The Training System of National Public Employees in Japan
8/11 First Secretary, Embassy of the Republic of Korea/Korea/1 Dispatch to International Organizations System in Japan
8/21 Visiting Party of Executive Researchers in Education from Anhui Province/China/5 The National Civil Service System in Japan
8/29 Youth Invitation Program/China/20 The National Civil Service System in Japan
9/20 Youth Invitation Program/Vietnam/26 The National Civil Service System in Japan
9/26 Visiting Party of Chinese Personnel Science Researchers/China/4 Reform and Development of the Civil Service Remuneration System and Personnel Administration in Japan
11/6 Seminar for Middle Level Officials/Malaysia/15
 The Training System of National Public Employees in Japan, Common Training(Training by Position)
11/6 Visiting Parties of the National Assembly of Viet Nam/Viet Nam/6 The Ethics System of National Public Employees in Japan
11/13 Visiting Parties from Jilin City/China/24 The National Civil Service System in Japan
 
4.   Invitation of Foreign Officials
    The NPA invites executive officials from personnel administrative organizations, etc., in foreign countries to exchange views on the actual state of personnel administration in order to strengthen the ties with foreign personnel administration organizations, promote cooperation in the field of personnel administration, and research the civil service system in foreign countries.
    In FY2006, Ms. Carmen Marrero, Chief, Community Relations Branch, Office of International Visitors, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, United States Department of State was invited to give a lecture entitled “Outline of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs” as well as to exchange opinions on personnel exchange programs between the two governments.
 
5.   Exchange with Relevant International Organizations
   The NPA actively dispatches personnel to international conferences hosted by international organizations and regional agencies, in order to encourage improvement of civil service personnel management in our country, to strengthen ties with foreign countries, and also to play a role as a member of the international community in the field of personnel administration.
   In FY2006, NPA officials participated in events including the Asian Public Administration Reform Forum hosted by the Ministry of Personnel of the People’s Republic of China in Nanning, China in April; the International Symposium on Public Personnel Management held in Barcelona, Spain in May; and the Meeting of the OECD Public Governance Committee at Ministerial Level held in October in Paris, France.
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