2021. 6.1

Japan Society of Civil Engineers
International Activities Center

IAC News No.10４

The 4th Seminar on the Internationalization of Technical Standards:“Internationalization of Roadside Stations”
The 4th Seminar on the Internationalization of TechnicalStandards: “Internationalization of Roadside Stations” was held
online on March 15, 2021. Over 130 people attended the seminarby online on the day.
Roadside stations, which began with 103 stations designated in1993, were initially designated as facilities to link regions as wellas to offer rest areas and information provision facilities. In Japan,
roadside stations were established as facilities to support regional
stimulation, disaster mitigation, and disaster relief, and as of 2020,
there are 1,180 roadside stations nationwide providing services.
Given that these roadside stations are also expected to have aneffect on the local economy in Asian countries other than Japan,
since around the year 2000, with the financial support ofinternational aid organizations such as the Japan Bank forInternational

Cooperation(JBIC),

JapanInternational

The 4th Seminar on theInternationalization of Technical Standards

Cooperation Agency (JICA), World Bank (WB), etc. technicalguidance and interaction have been carried out by those who have actually been involved in the running of local
roadside stations.
During the seminar, Haruo Ishida, Director General of the Research Institute for Road and Street, as part of his
introduction to the third stage of the roadside station policy that will be undertaken by the Japanese government,emphasized the need for compounding of various functions expected of future roadside stations as well asbranding and international expansion. Toshiyuki Monma of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport andTourism explained the roadside station system, the direction of future private sector involvement, the state ofoverseas expansion, and the public sector financial support system. This talk was followed by Fumio Kato, whohas been running roadside stations for many years in Chiba, speaking about the transferring of Japan’s roadsidestation technologies to Vietnam and Indonesia. Mr. Kato also described his precious experience at Roadside
Station Tomiura, which is regarded as a modern-day success story. To end, Kazuko Kano, who has facilitated1

the overseas expansion of roadside stations in Thailand and India, etc. with JBIC and JICA, talked about theimportant role that roadside stations have played, especially from the perspective of improving the skills ofwomen in rural areas and their involvement in society, as well as the relationship of roadside stations with SDGs.
Going forward, there are high expectations that grassroots exchanges between Japan and other countries will
advance further through the concept of roadside stations developed in Japan.

【Reported by Hidenori Yoshikane（Yachiyo Engineering Co., Ltd.）,
Project Group, International Activities Center, JSCE】

FY2020 Joint Seminar (Vietnam)

International Joint Seminar on
Appropriate Technology in Japanese ODA’s Infrastructure Projects
Co-hosted by the Construction Management Committee of the Japan Society of Civil Engineers, the Vietnam
Federation of Civil Engineering Association (VFCEA), and the University of Transport and Communications(UTC), the “International Joint Seminar on Appropriate Technology in Japanese ODA's Infrastructure Projects”
was held on Thursday, March 25, 2021. While consideration was given to canceling the seminar due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, both sides reached an agreement that we should definitely make the most of thisopportunity and go ahead and hold the event. The other parties set up a venue at University of Transport andCommunications, and it was decided that together we would hold an in-person and online “hybrid seminar” thatwould connect with the Japanese participants via Zoom. There were approximately 80 advanced resistrants forthe joint seminar, and just over 60 people participated on the day. There were just over 30 attendees on theVietnam side, meaning that combined attendees from both countries came to about 100 people.
This sub-committee (International Collaboration Sub-committee) has been studying the “introduction of user
perspective in evaluations after official development assistance (ODA) projects.” In examining this subject, werealized the importance of examining the following two factors in order to take a closer look at this topic: [1]the differences in evaluation from the perspective of each entity (investor or user) and [2] the difference between
generally adopted “standard technology” and “appropriate technology” suitable for the local conditions.
Appropriate technology is defined here as technology that suits the environmental conditions that differ fromcountry to country, such as natural conditions, construction circumstances, and maintenance capabilities.
Appropriate technology in corresponding projects may differ from the “standard technology” used in Japan. In
fact, various appropriate technologies have been devised and applied in Japan's ODA projects, but the lessons
learned and findings of such ODA projects have not always been sufficiently analyzed, organized, and shared.
That’s why this subcommittee, with Junji YOKOKURA (Yachiyo Engineering Co., Ltd.) and Hitoshi
NINOMIYA (Toyo University) at the heart of proceedings, investigated case studies in which appropriatetechnologies were introduced in infrastructure development projects backed by Japanese ODA, analyzed and2

evaluated the risks associated with the selection of technologies and construction methods from the standpointsof both the donor and host countries, and conducted research to examine new technology evaluation methods.
The seminar featured six presentations, with “Fundamental Research on Evaluation Methodology ofAppropriate Technology for Infrastructure Projects by Japan’s ODA (Dr. Junji YOKOKURA, Yachiyo
Engineering Co., Ltd.)” and “Appropriate Technology & Global Competency (Dr. Lingling WANG, Utsunomiya
University)” from the Japanese side, and “The issues of accessing ODA loan for the PPP (Public-PrivatePartnership) projects in Vietnam (Mr. Anh VU TUAN, Department of Infrastructure, Ministry of Transport)”,“Flood Disaster and Countermeasures in Vietnam (Associate Professor Thanh NGUYEN VIET, Transport andCommunications University)”, “The issues of Special Terms for Economic Partnership (STEP) related toJapanese ODA transport projects (Mr. Tho DAO TRUONG, Thang Long Project Management Unit)”, “Someissues related to urban railway operation technology within ODA projects in Vietnam (Dr. Quy NGUYEN TIEN,Transport and Communications University)” from the Vietnamese side.
Program
7:15 - 7:30
7:30 - 7:45

Registration
Opening remarks

7:45 - 8:15

Fundamental Research on Evaluation
Methodology of Appropriate Technologyfor Infrastructure Projects by Japan’s ODA

8:15 - 8:45

The issues of accessing ODA loan for the
PPP projects in Vietnam

8:45 - 9:15

Flood Disaster and Countermeasures inVietnam

9:15 - 9:30
9:30 - 10:00

Tea breakAppropriate Technology & GlobalCompetency

10:00 - 10:30

The issues of Special Terms for Economic
Partnership (STEP) related to Japanese
ODA transport projects
Some issues related urban railway
operation technology within ODA projects
in Vietnam
Questions and Answer/ and Closing

10:30 - 11:00

11:00 - 11:30

Representatives of Vietnamese side and Japan
Society of Civil Engineers (JSCE)
Dr. Junji YOKOKURA, Yachiyo Engineering Co.,
Ltd.,
Prof. Hitoshi NINOMIYA, Toyo University,
Prof. Tsunemi WATANABE, Kochi University ofTechnology
Mr. Anh VU TUAN, Deputy Director General ofDepartment of Infrastructure, Ministry ofTransport
Assoc. Prof. Thanh NGUYEN VIET, Laboratoryof Urban Transport and Marine Coastal
Engineering, Vice Dean of Faculty of CivilEngineering, UTC
Dr. Lingling WANG, Utsunomiya University,
Prof. Tsunemi Watanabe, Kochi University ofTechnology
Mr. Tho DAO TRUONG, Senior Engineer ofThang Long Project Management Unit;
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Hai NGUYEN LUONG, UTC
Dr. Quy NGUYEN TIEN, Vice Head ofLaboratory of Transport and Railway Economics,UTCNote: Vietnam local time

The issues discussed were roughly divided into the following two areas. The first area is appropriate technology
and the second area is Japan's ODA project scheme. The first issue is the main theme of this joint seminar. Theseminar participants discussed [1] evaluation items from the user's point of view, [2]a) what is appropriatetechnology?, [2]b) how to apply appropriate technology?, and [3] (= [1] + [2]) the evaluation of appropriatetechnology from the user's point of view. Many questions and opinions were raised from the Vietnamese side as3

well as from Vietnamese engineers working for consulting firms in Japan. The Vietnam side also made a
proposal to carry out joint research because “appropriate technology” is important. Regarding the second issue,
there were some requests from the Vietnamese side, including that of “STEP”, and it was observed that there
was a difference in understanding between the Japanese side and the Vietnamese side. From the Japanese side,
the difference in understanding could be put down to the fact that there is at the very least [1] a difference in theperception of risks and [2] a difference in the perception of what the goal is. It was observed that for [1], it ispossible to achieve a win-win situation by integrating the perceptions of both parties, but that business-likenegotiations and compromises would be required for [2]. I felt that it is important to continue this kind of open
exchange of opinions in the future.
Through this joint seminar, we were able to deepen discussions about the essence of appropriate technology andimprovements to evaluation methods after projects, and this opened the door for facilitating joint research in thefuture. The proceedings of this seminar will also be published in May 2021. The outcome of this seminar isexpected to contribute to academic value in the form of developing appropriate evaluation methods for selected
technologies in ODA social infrastructure development projects, as well as practical value in the form ofimproving the effectiveness and efficiency of evaluating Japan's ODA social infrastructure development projects.
We received help from many people in holding this seminar. In particular, I would like to express a heartfelt
thanks to Dr. Hai NGUYEN LUONG, an associate professor at University of Transport and Communications,
who served as the secretary-general for this seminar, as well as to the secretariat of the Japan Society of Civil
Engineers.
※This joint seminar is supported by International Scientific Exchange Fund, JSCE.

Seminar is Connected to UTC

Participants on the Vietnam Side

【Reported by Tsunemi Watanabe, Former Chair, International Collaboration Sub-committee,Construction Management Committee (Kochi University of Technology)】

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Joint Japan-US Symposium on
Assessment, Management, and Governance for Infrastructure Resilience

The symposium “Joint Japan-US Symposium on
Assessment, Management, and Governance forInfrastructure Resilience” was held online for thefour days of April 14 (Wednesday), April 16(Friday), April 28 (Wednesday), and April 30(Friday) with the cooperation of the Japan Societyof Civil Engineers and the American Society ofCivil Engineers Infrastructure Resilience Division(ASCE IRD). The first symposium was entitled

Infrastructure Resilience Framework“Symposium on Infrastructure Resilience”, withresearchers and practitioners from both academic societies gathering at the Civil Engineering Hall on May 22and 23, 2019 to introduce the concept of an infrastructure resilience framework and discuss the importance ofinfrastructure resilience. Since then, both academic societies have continued joint research to promote awarenessof the framework and apply it in practice as well as draw up related manuals.
At this symposium, the concept of the framework was reiterated and discussions from a variety of different
perspectives took place about how important it is that we strengthen and improve resilience in order to ensure
we mitigate the risk of natural disasters that have increased significantly in scale in recent years and ensure thesurvival, development, and well-being of our community.
The first session (April 14)
welcomed Kiyoshi Kobayashi,
adistinguishedprofessor(Kyoto University, the 106th
President of the Japan Societyof Civil Engineers), and two
otherkeynotespeakers.

Explaining the concept of
infrastructure

resilience

Panelists and MC of Day 3

framework and the importanceof community resilience, he spoke about methodologies for analyzing, designing, and improving resilience. In
the second session (April 16), Professor Yoshikazu Takahashi (Kyoto University), Sho Asada (Water andDisaster Management Bureau of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism), and two otherkeynote speakers were invited to discuss community functions, management, and governance, and they
considered the resilience of social infrastructure facilities. In the third session (April 28), Professor Riki Honda(The University of Tokyo), Professor Yoshio Kajitani (Kagawa University), and two other keynote speakers
discussed aspects of infrastructure such as disaster mitigation, disaster recovery and restoration, economic

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activities, and transportation and telecommunications regarding
their relationship with resilience and the community through theoperation and management of infrastructure systems. The fourth
session (April 30) summarized the discussions over the previous
three days and discussed an integrated approach to improving
community resilience as well as new initiatives and policies.
Strengthening and improving the resilience of infrastructure toensure the well-being of the community is a constant issue andchallenge for civil engineers. The Japan Society of Civil
Engineers and ASCE IRD will address to work on issues andconsider new approaches and technologies.
You can watch the videos of presentations at the symposium aswell as live recordings of the discussions. Be sure to check themout.

Pre-recorded Presentation Videos Available onthe Website (https://www.infraresil.jp/event/01/)【Reported by JSCE - ASCE Infrastructure Resilience Research Group】

Updates◆Seventh Engineers' Lounge “DOBOKU” (Japanese)
https://committees.jsce.or.jp/kokusai/node/222◆Joint Japan-US Symposium on Assessment, Management, and Governancefor Infrastructure Resilience*Pre-recorded Presentation Available on the Website.
https://www.infraresil.jp/event/01/◆Neak Loeung Bridge (Tsubasa Bridge) Construction Project
http://www.jsce.or.jp/e/archive/project/pj12.html■The International Infrastructure Archives– A Compilation of Japan’s Greatest Projects in Transfer of Civil
Engineering Technology in Service –http://www.jsce.or.jp/e/archive/◆ASCE Lifeline Conference 2021 2022
Transportation Sector panel discussion, June 10, 12p.m. (PST)
https://samueli.ucla.edu/lifelines2021/◆The 17th World Conference on Earthquake Engineering (17WCEE)
http://www.17wcee.jp/index.html

6National University of Civil Engineering
April 2021 Newsletter（https://committees.jsce.or.jp/kokusai/node/2◆IAC YouTube Channel
https://youtube.com/channel/UCGIs6DHrzX_cGD-mHUrRlkA◆9th International Conference on Experimental Vibration Analysis for Civil
Engineering Structures (EVACES2021)
https://ec-intl.co.jp/evaces2021/◆IAC “News Pick Up!!” on the JSCE Japanese website
https://committees.jsce.or.jp/kokusai/iac_dayori_2021

The Construction 2050 Alliance（https://euconstruction2050.eu/）◆Summary of featured articles in JSCE Magazine Vol. 106, No.6, June 2021
http://www.jsce-int.org/pub/magazine◆Journal of JSCE
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