Supplement to the currently effective Statements of Additional Information for
the below-listed fund:


DWS Japan Equity Fund
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The following information supplements and replaces similar information contained
in the "Management of the Fund" section of the currently effective Statements of
Additional Information for DWS Japan Equity Fund (the "Fund").

Compensation of Portfolio Manager

Portfolio managers are eligible for total compensation comprised of base salary
and variable compensation.

Base Salary - Base salary is linked to job functions, responsibilities and
financial services industry peer comparison through the use of extensive market
data surveys.

Variable Compensation - Generally, variable compensation comprises a greater
proportion of total compensation as a portfolio manager's seniority and
compensation levels increase. Variable Compensation may include a cash bonus
incentive, and potential participation in long-term incentive programs including
but not limited to, Deutsche Bank equity, equity linked vehicle, and restricted
cash. Variable compensation is determined based on an analysis of a number of
factors, including among other things, the performance of Deutsche Bank, the
performance of the Asset Management division, and the portfolio manager's
individual contribution. In evaluating individual contribution, management will
consider a combination of quantitative and qualitative factors. Top performing
investment professionals earn a total compensation package that is highly
competitive. As variable compensation increases, the percentage awarded in
long-term incentives also increases. Long-term incentives are subject to a
clawback provision for unvested portions only during the three-year life of the
plan should the individual engage in any conduct that is a significant breach of
Deutsche Bank policies and procedures.

o        The quantitative analysis of a portfolio manager's individual
         performance is based on, among other factors, performance of all of the
         accounts managed by the portfolio manager (which includes the fund and
         any other accounts managed by the portfolio manager) over a one-,
         three-, and five-year period relative to the appropriate Morningstar
         and Lipper peer group universes and/or benchmark index(es) with respect
         to each account. Additionally, the portfolio manager's
         retail/institutional asset mix is weighted, as appropriate for
         evaluation purposes. Generally the benchmark index used is a benchmark
         index set forth in the fund's prospectus to which the fund's
         performance is compared. Additional or different appropriate peer group
         or benchmark indices may also be used. Primary weight is given to
         pre-tax portfolio performance over three-year and five-year time
         periods (adjusted as appropriate if the portfolio manager has served
         for less than five years) with lesser consideration given to portfolio
         performance over a one-year period. The increase or decrease in a
         fund's assets due to the purchase or sale of fund shares is not
         considered a material factor.

o        The qualitative analysis of a portfolio manager's individual
         performance is based on, among other things, the results of an annual
         management and internal peer review process, and management's
         assessment of overall portfolio manager contributions to investor
         relations, the investment process and overall performance (distinct
         from fund and other account performance). Other factors, including
         contributions made to the investment team, as well as adherence to
         Compliance Policies and Procedures, Risk Management procedures, the
         firm's Code of Ethics and "living the values" of the Advisor are also
         factors.

The quantitative analysis of a portfolio manager's performance is given more
weight in determining variable compensation than the qualitative portion.

Fund Ownership of Portfolio Manager

The following table shows the dollar range of shares owned beneficially and of
record by portfolio manager in the Fund as well as in all DWS Funds as a group
(i.e., those funds advised by Deutsche Asset Management or its

<PAGE>

affiliates), including investments by their immediate family members sharing the
same household and amounts invested through retirement and deferred compensation
plans. This information is provided as of March 31, 2009.

                                Dollar Range of       Dollar Range of All DWS
Name of Portfolio Manager      Fund Shares Owned         Fund Shares Owned
-------------------------      -----------------         -----------------

Masaaki Kadota                         $0                        $0

Because the Fund's portfolio manager is not a resident in the US, he generally
does not invest in US registered investment companies, such as the Fund, on
account of US tax and other regulatory limitations applicable to foreign
investors.

Conflicts of Interest

In addition to managing the assets of the Fund, the Fund's portfolio manager may
have responsibility for managing other client accounts of the Advisor or its
affiliates. The tables below show, for the portfolio manager, the number and
asset size of (1) SEC registered investment companies (or series thereof) other
than the Fund, (2) pooled investment vehicles that are not registered investment
companies and (3) other accounts (e.g., accounts managed for individuals or
organizations) managed by the portfolio manager. Total assets attributed to the
portfolio manager in the tables below include total assets of each account
managed by them, although the manager may only manage a portion of such
account's assets. The tables also show the number of performance based fee
accounts, as well as the total assets of the accounts for which the advisory fee
is based on the performance of the account. This information is provided as of
March 31, 2009.

Other SEC Registered Investment Companies Managed:

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                                 Number of
                                       Number of        Total Assets of         Investment          Total Assets of
                                      Registered          Registered         Company Accounts        Performance-
                                      Investment          Investment         with Performance-         Based Fee
Name of Portfolio Manager              Companies           Companies             Based Fee             Accounts
-------------------------              ---------           ---------             ---------             --------

<S>                                        <C>                <C>                    <C>                  <C>
Masaaki Kadota                             0                  $0                     0                    $0

Other Pooled Investment Vehicles Managed:

                                                                              Number of Pooled
                                                                                 Investment
                                      Number of                               Vehicle Accounts      Total Assets of
                                       Pooled          Total Assets of              with             Performance-
                                     Investment       Pooled Investment         Performance-           Based Fee
Name of Portfolio Manager             Vehicles             Vehicles              Based Fee             Accounts
-------------------------             --------             --------              ---------             --------

Masaaki Kadota                           14              $812,483,085                0                    $0


Other Accounts Managed:

                                                                                 Number of
                                                                               Other Accounts       Total Assets of
                                      Number of                                     with             Performance-
                                        Other          Total Assets of          Performance-           Based Fee
Name of Portfolio Manager             Accounts          Other Accounts           Based Fee             Accounts
-------------------------             --------          --------------           ---------             --------

Masaaki Kadota                            0                   $0                     0                    $0
</TABLE>


<PAGE>

In addition to the accounts above, an investment professional may manage
accounts in a personal capacity that may include holdings that are similar to,
or the same as, those of the Fund. The Advisor has in place a Code of Ethics
that is designed to address conflicts of interest and that, among other things,
imposes restrictions on the ability of portfolio managers and other "access
persons" to invest in securities that may be recommended or traded in the Fund
and other client accounts.

Real, potential or apparent conflicts of interest may arise when a portfolio
manager has day-to-day portfolio management responsibilities with respect to
more than one fund or account, including the following:

o        Certain investments may be appropriate for the Fund and also for other
         clients advised by the Advisor, including other client accounts managed
         by the Fund's portfolio management team. Investment decisions for the
         Fund and other clients are made with a view to achieving their
         respective investment objectives and after consideration of such
         factors as their current holdings, availability of cash for investment
         and the size of their investments generally. A particular security may
         be bought or sold for only one client or in different amounts and at
         different times for more than one but less than all clients. Likewise,
         because clients of the Advisor may have differing investment
         strategies, a particular security may be bought for one or more clients
         when one or more other clients are selling the security. The investment
         results achieved for the Fund may differ from the results achieved for
         other clients of the Advisor. In addition, purchases or sales of the
         same security may be made for two or more clients on the same day. In
         such event, such transactions will be allocated among the clients in a
         manner believed by the Advisor to be most equitable to each client,
         generally utilizing a pro rata allocation methodology. In some cases,
         the allocation procedure could potentially have an adverse effect or
         positive effect on the price or amount of the securities purchased or
         sold by the Fund. Purchase and sale orders for the Fund may be combined
         with those of other clients of the Advisor in the interest of achieving
         the most favorable net results to the Fund and the other clients.

o        To the extent that a portfolio manager has responsibilities for
         managing multiple client accounts, a portfolio manager will need to
         divide time and attention among relevant accounts. The Advisor attempts
         to minimize these conflicts by aligning its portfolio management teams
         by investment strategy and by employing similar investment models
         across multiple client accounts.

o        In some cases, an apparent conflict may arise where the Advisor has an
         incentive, such as a performance-based fee, in managing one account and
         not with respect to other accounts it manages. The Advisor will not
         determine allocations based on whether it receives a performance-based
         fee from the client. Additionally, the Advisor has in place supervisory
         oversight processes to periodically monitor performance deviations for
         accounts with like strategies.

o        The Advisor and its affiliates and the investment team of the Funds may
         manage other mutual funds and separate accounts on a long-short basis.
         The simultaneous management of long and short portfolios creates
         potential conflicts of interest including the risk that short sale
         activity could adversely affect the market value of the long
         positions(and vice versa), the risk arising from sequential orders in
         long and short positions, and the risks associated with receiving
         opposing orders at the same time. The Advisor has adopted procedures
         that it believes are reasonably designed to mitigate these potential
         conflicts of interest. Included in these procedures are specific
         guidelines developed to ensure fair and equitable treatment for all
         clients whose accounts are managed by each Fund's portfolio management
         team. The Advisor and the portfolio management team have established
         monitoring procedures, a protocol for supervisory reviews, as well as
         compliance oversight to ensure that potential conflicts of interest
         relating to this type of activity are properly addressed.

The Advisor is owned by Deutsche Bank AG, a multi-national financial services
company. Therefore, the Advisor is affiliated with a variety of entities that
provide, and/or engage in commercial banking, insurance, brokerage, investment
banking, financial advisory, broker-dealer activities (including sales and
trading), hedge funds, real estate and private equity investing, in addition to
the provision of investment management services to institutional and individual
investors. Since Deutsche Bank AG, its affiliates, directors, officers and
employees (the "Firm") are engaged in businesses and have interests other than
managing asset management accounts, such other activities involve real,
potential or apparent conflicts of interest. These interests and activities
include potential advisory, transactional and financial activities and other
interests in securities and companies that may be directly or indirectly

<PAGE>

purchased or sold by the Firm for its clients' advisory accounts. These are
considerations of which advisory clients should be aware and which may cause
conflicts that could be to the disadvantage of the Advisor's advisory clients.
The Advisor has instituted business and compliance policies, procedures and
disclosures that are designed to identify, monitor and mitigate conflicts of
interest and, as appropriate, to report them to the Fund's Board.




               Please Retain This Supplement for Future Reference




May 5, 2009