Amid the nation's continued tight finances, the Finance Ministry proposed Monday a 3.8 percent cut in foreign aid in fiscal 2005 for the sixth straight year of decrease in the initial budget.
The ministry allocated 786.2 billion yen, or roughly $7.5 billion, for official development assistance in the draft budget for the fiscal year starting April 1, down from 816.9 billion yen in the initial budget for the current fiscal year.
The proposed cut came despite the Foreign Ministry's call for ending the downtrend in ODA expenditures since fiscal 2000. The ministry argues that ODA is Japan's most important diplomatic tool.