January 22, 2020 Public Appeal for Executing Agencies of Innovation Program

The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) has decided to make an appeal for executing agencies of an innovation program that will support fantastic and ambitious technical challenges with a high possibility to create value on a destructive global scale and transmit diversified varieties of challenges from all over Japan to every corner of the world.

In the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, and with the transformation of the industrial structure on a global scale, expectations of disruptive innovations that will dramatically change existing markets are growing in order to maintain Japan’s international competitiveness and economic growth.

For Japan’s disruptive innovation, first of all, a particular ground is required to let the buds of unusual ideas beyond existing common sense to grow naturally, as well as a culture that accepts heterogeneous diversity and an atmosphere that allow people’s bold efforts towards challenges with no fear of failure. Besides, explosive global transmission will be a powerful force as the buds of disruptive innovation that have been born grow significantly.

MIC has been implementing the innovation program since fiscal 2014 to support “eccentric people” working on challenges and ambitious technical issues with no fear of failure. In this connection, MIC has decided to make a public appeal for implementing the program to excavate and train people who work with curiosity on the creation of new things from nothing with an ability to discover unprecedented issues (unpredictable by artificial intelligence) and open up the future rather than knowing conventional correct answers, and provide support for disseminating the buds of Japan’s disruptive innovation born through challenges on a global scale.

1. Targets

Companies and organizations responsible as executing agencies

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    This public appeal is for executing agencies and not for recruiting those who will take on technical issues. The public appeal for those who will take on technical issues will start after the decision of executing agencies.

2. Period of submission

From Wednesday, January 22, and no later than Tuesday, February 25, 2020 (Opinions, if submitted by mail, must arrive no later than the same day.)

3. Subject

Refer to the links of the application procedure for executing agencies of the innovation program and the implementation procedure for executing agencies.

MIC will make this appeal before the fiscal 2020 budget bill passes the Diet so that eligible organizations can start the project as soon as possible. Therefore, it should be kept in mind that the selection of candidate contractors and the execution of budgets for the project are subject to change according to the passage of the budget bill.

4. Estimated budget of executing agencies

The amount will be determined as deemed appropriate by MIC within a range not exceeding 300 million yen (including general administrative expenses, consumption tax, and local consumption tax).

5. Selection of contractors

Executing agencies will be selected according to the comprehensive evaluation of external experts through the application submitted for each theme and the screening of the presentations at the Examination Committee.

Contact

For further information about this press release, please fill in the inquiry form and submit it to MIC on the website
https://www.soumu.go.jp/common/english_opinions.html

International Policy Division, Global Strategy Bureau, MIC

TEL: +81 3 5253 5920

FAX: +81 3 5253 5924