Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) announced the conclusion of an agreement on October 29 to invest $4 million in the Rebright Partners IV Investment Partnership (RP 4th Fund), which is managed by Rebright Partners Pte Ltd (Rebright) (Managing Director: EBIHARA Takeshi), a Japanese venture capital (VC) firm. JICA's investment will be allocated to startups in India that are engaged in solving the country’s social issues such as education, healthcare, agriculture, climate change, and financial inclusion through digital transformation (DX).

India is witnessing the rapid emergence of startups thanks to the country's world-class IT industry and the abundant and talented human resources that support it. With currently more than 40,000 startups active and 470,000 new jobs created in the past five years, startups have become important players in supporting employment and technological innovation in India. Initiatives to transform society through the use of digital technology are known as DX, and it is expected that DX initiatives led by startups will help solve social issues through new approaches such as telemedicine and smart farming.

Rebright has a successful history of managing a number of funds, with a focus primarily on Southeast Asia and India. The company specializes in business alliance matching between Japanese companies and the emerging countries in which it invests. To date, it has achieved business alliances between more than 20 companies in Japan and, in its investment locations, contributing to the open innovation of Japanese companies. Rebright’s RP 4th Fund is a VC fund that invests in startups engaged in DX in emerging countries, most notably in India. The fund aims to contribute to solving social issues in India by focusing on the education, healthcare, agriculture, climate change, and financial inclusion sectors. JICA also aims to further contribute to the SDGs through the investment activities of this Rebright-managed fund. These include supporting the enhancement of the company's ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) scheme, as well as the creation of an environmental/social management system and an impact assessment system.

JICA will continue to support startups and funds that are tackling social issues in emerging countries by leveraging the knowledge and network it has gained through its collaboration with the RP 4th Fund.