The Overseas Human Resources and Industry Development Association (HIDA), a technical co-operation organisation based upon public private partnership, was established in Japan on 30 March 2012, from the merger of the Association for Overseas Technical Scholarship (AOTS) and the Japan Overseas Development Corporation (JODC).
AOTS, specialising in designing and conducting training programs, has trained more than 320, 000 engineers and managers in around 170 developing countries and regions for 52 years. And in both Japan and Pakistan, AOTS has co-organised management training programs in various fields. Thus far, 2500 Pakistanis have received training in Japan, and 2300 individuals have participated in the local programs. AOTS's collaborative initiatives with Pakistan Japan Business Forums (PJBF) dates back to FY 2001, with the organisation of an IT training program at the AOTS Kansai Kenshu Center in Osaka City. Even before the commencement, its success was almost guaranteed. PJBF actively recruited talented individuals, and gave them a thorough pre-departure orientation. Meanwhile, AOTS did its best to build the best qualified faculty, and ensure that the expatriated Pakistani's life in Japan would be free from trouble. Our efforts finally bore fruit. At the closing ceremony, we received a wide applause from the participants, and others concerned. It was the very beginning of our great journey.
Since then, topics of great interest such as 5S's, Kaizen, and QC were added to the list of training themes. Throughout the years of consistent co-operation with PJBF, AOTS provided training for a total of more than 350 Pakistani business leaders and engineers both in Japan and Pakistan. Of course, without PJBF's relentless dedication, none of the programs would have been implemented successfully. The Pakistani nationals who participated in AOTS/PJBF training programs have been fully committed to further development of their companies as well as local communities.
The newly created HIDA is certain that our co-operation will continue to flourish. It is because, through the aforesaid merger, HIDA should be able to expand the human networks that AOTS and JODC have respectively built up thus far in the two countries, and combined their know-how on structuring training programs and experts dispatch programs. In fact, we see this merger as the ideal opportunity for development, and aim to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of public private partnership-based technological co-operation that contributes to the mutual economic development of Japan and Pakistan, as well as to the promotion of friendly relations between the two countries.