Ministry OKs Institute of Science Tokyo’s Enhancement Plan

Tokyo, Feb. 27 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s education ministry said Friday that it has approved the Institute of Science Tokyo’s 25-year plan to strengthen its research capabilities. The national institution was selected last month as the second university eligible for aid from the government’s 10-trillion-yen fund set up under its project to foster universities with world-class research capabilities. The 25-year plan will start in April. The university will receive about 12.4 billion yen in subsidies for the first year soon. “We hope the Institute of Science Tokyo will lead Japan’s research capabilities,” education minister Yohei Matsumoto told a news conference Friday. Under the plan, the Institute of Science Tokyo aims to implement reform to foster broad cooperation inside the university and with other institutions across research fields by eliminating organizational barriers. Naoto Otake, president at the university, has expressed an intention to use 80 pct of the subsidies for “human resources,” such as student support and the recruitment of excellent research personnel. The Institute of Science Tokyo was created in 2024 through the merger of Tokyo Medical and Dental University and the Tokyo Institute of Technology. Tohoku University, a national institution in Miyagi Prefecture, northeastern Japan, was picked as the first University for International Research Excellence in 2024 under the project’s first-round selection process. Among other applicants in the second round of selection procedures, Kyoto University has been unofficially designated as a candidate. Meanwhile, the ministry has decided that screening of the University of Tokyo needs to be continued for up to one year, due to a series of issues involving the institution, such as bribery. As the ministry plans to choose a total of only several universities for the government project, a decision on whether to conduct a third round of selection procedures will be made based on factors such as the outcome of the ongoing screening of the University of Tokyo. An institution designated under the project can receive government aid of around 10 billion yen annually for up to 25 years. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]