The Green Asia Project is a four-year initiative launched in FY2022 by the Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences (JIRCAS), assigned by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan (MAFF). Based on the "MIDORI Strategy for Sustainable Food Systems (MIDORI Strategy)" which was formulated by MAFF in 2021, the project aims to accelerate the application of Japanese scalable agricultural, forestry, and fisheries technologies in the Asia-Monsoon region, contributing to the development of sustainable food systems in the area. The project is structured around two strategic pillars: 1. Building a system for international collaboration and disseminating information Through the establishment of the International Scientific Advisory Board and the International Information Center for Strategy MIDORI, and strengthened collaboration with the ASEAN Secretariat and FAO, the project has systematically disseminated information of Japanese scalable technologies. One of the key outcomes is the Technology Catalog Contributing to Production Potential and Sustainability in the Asia-Monsoon Region, which compiles 44 technologies developed in Japan and through international research partnership. This catalog has been introduced on the websites of international organizations and featured in official ASEAN guidelines, demonstrating its contribution to policy development for the social implementation of agricultural technologies. 2. Collaborative Research on Agricultural Technologies Field trials were conducted in several countries across the Asia-Monsoon region for three key technologies: Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD), Biological Nitrification Inhibition (BNI) wheat, and rice blast control using a differential system. These trials assessed the applicability of each technology in relation to local context, serving as a bridge toward broader dissemination. The process also helped identify challenges and prospects for scaling up these technologies. Through the implementation of this project, several key lessons have emerged: The importance of a “center” or hub function for consolidating and disseminating technical information; The need to strengthen science-policy interfaces; The necessity of strategic planning from the early stages of project development. These insights are expected to contribute not only to the further dissemination of Japanese technologies in the Asia-Monsoon region, but also to their application in other Global South countries.
Yasuro FUNAKI (Sat,) studied this question.