Founded in 1932 with a donation from the Emperor Showa, the agency became an independent administrative institution in 2003 under the aegis of the Japanese Ministry for Education, Culture, Sport, Science and Technology (MEXT).

JSPS today has 11 offices around the world: these are the central office in Tokyo and 10 liaison offices, one of which is in Strasbourg (France).

The equivalent of ANR in France, the principal activities of the agency consist of selecting and supporting research projects in Japan. It is also responsible for organising international academic exchange programmes: 

• By supporting young researchers (post-doctoral scholarships between Japan and foreign countries)
• By promoting international scientific cooperation (e.g. the bilateral programmes with French organisations such as CNRS, INSERM, INRA, INRIA, ANR, etc.)
• By distributing information on international science research activities

The budget for fiscal 2009 was 160 billion yen (approximately 1.3 billion euros).

On 29 November last, Nakatani Yoichi (Director), Tada Satoko (Deputy Director), and Hamada Naoto (International Associate) presented the numerous opportunities for exchange scholarships with Japan. In addition, Lucile Joly-Pottuz, lecturer-researcher at the SGM Department and the MATEIS Laboratory, who had been supported by a JSPS Scholarship in 2005-2006, spoke of her highly positive experience in Japan.

If you are involved in exchanges or collaborative work with Japan or want to develop them, or if you want to know more about scholarship opportunities for exchanges between INSA and Japan at doctoral, post-doctoral, young researcher or senior researcher level, JSPS can assist and inform you.