• Basic principle: The "Ishikawa Project" is highly unique in its long-term orientation, compared to the approach by the IMF and the World Bank. As the project was initiated, three main tasks of the Vietnamese Government were identified: (i) macroeconomic stabilization; (ii) structural adjustment (systemic transition to a market economy); and (iii) the design and implementation of long-term development strategy. In the project, the highest priority was given to the third task of long-term development. This is partly because the former two tasks had already been supported by the IMF and the World Bank and the Vietnamese authorities had recognized and begun responding to these challenges. But more importantly, it was because the problems faced by Vietnam were fundamentally different from those of Russia and Eastern Europe where industrialization had been achieved to a large extent under the previous communist governments. In Vietnam, by contrast, the economy remained seriously underdeveloped, and its main task was not systemic transition but economic development. Therefore, strong emphasis was placed on the task of long-term development and poverty reduction through industrialization. Attention was also paid to the appropriate role of the government in the development process.
  
• Approach and methodology: Based on the above principle, main research topics were selected and task forces were organized. Each task force provided policy options, based on the deep understanding of the existing situations and constraints of Vietnam which were assessed through intensive field surveys and quantitative analyses. The experience of Japan and other East Asian countries, especially P. R. China, was frequently referred to. Moreover, major efforts were made in assisting the drafting process of the Sixth Five-Year Plan 1996-2000; providing timely advice on the implementation issues of the Sixth Five-Year Plan and other emerging issues (e.g., the AFTA deadline of 2006 and WTO entry negotiations, response to capital account and financial liberalization in light of the Asian crisis in July 1997); and assisting the formulation of the Seventh Five-Year Plan 2001-2005 and the Ten-Year Strategy for 2001-2010.
  
• Team composition: From the Japanese side, about twenty academics participated in the research team, and almost the same number of government officials was involved from the Vietnamese side. At various stages of research planning, implementation, and analysis of policy options, intensive discussions were held so that both sides could gain sufficient understanding of the issues and reach consensus.

The "Ishikawa Project" is a good example of Japan's intellectual ODA that shows the Japanese development approach based on long-term orientation and real-sector concern. The project made important contributions in three areas: (i) advice on strategic policy options for the long-term development agenda; (ii) production of various academic research papers including analytic assessment and key development issues facing Vietnam; and (iii) technical assistance to Vietnamese policy makers in research methodology and Japan's development approach, through a collaborative process. While the project was completed in March 2001, most of the task force activities have developed into independent, joint research projects. Greater emphasis is put on the design and implementation of concrete measures, which are necessary for Vietnam to reach the targets of the development vision as envisaged in the Seventh Five-Year Plan and the Ten-Year Strategy.