The Geography of Japanese Development Aid to China, 1978–98

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Abstract
Japan is the largest donor of development aid to China, and China is the largest recipient of international aid and arguably the most significant emergent transitional economy in the world. A survey of Japan's aid is helpful in any attempt to understand the impact of aid on China's national and regional development and on state strategies. Japan's aid is closely tied to the health of Japan's economy—the second largest economy in the world. Though certainly not unique in this regard, Japan's aid has a reputation for serving Japan's own national interests at the expense of the recipient nation's environmental and social conditions. The results of this survey reveal: (a) clearly defined and specific geographic patterns to Japan's aid to China; (b) changing sectoral patterns in Japan's aid to China; (c) important institutional changes underway in Japan's aid programs; and (d) a transfer of capital from Japan to China which serve the divergent goals of each state, though not necessarily in ways intended by each state.