Japan has decided to reduce its financial contributions to international organizations, including the United Nations, in light of its tight fiscal situation, government sources said Wednesday.
The government plans to carry out a thorough review of these funds, which rose 2.7 percent to 133.3 billion yen in the fiscal 2004 budget, thereby allowing changes to be made in the budget for fiscal 2005 and beyond, the sources said.
The government will aim to cut its contributions to the U.N. by several billion yen when members' contribution ratio is next revised in 2006.
In the fiscal 2004 budget, 37.3 billion yen has been allocated to the international body.
Under the current arrangement, Japan puts up 19.5 percent of the funds for the U.N., down about 1 percentage point from when the percentage was last revised in 2000.
But a senior Finance Ministry official said, "Japan's economic growth remains slow, and we believe that a ratio below 15 percent is appropriate."
The lowering of the ratio is expected to drive down Japan's contributions to other organizations operating under the U.N.
Foreign Ministry officials said Tuesday that the OECD is likely to comply with Japan's request for a cut in monetary contributions to the Paris-based club of 30 developed countries.
The request is expected to be formally accepted by the OECD at a ministerial council meeting in Paris in May.
The OECD operates on an annual budget of around 20 billion yen, with Japan contributing some 5 billion yen.
If the OECD accepts Japan's request, Tokyo will be able to cut its annual contribution by about 400 million yen, starting in 2006, following a provisional reduction of around 200 million yen in 2005.