Application for the 2023-2024 Japan and World Bank Scholarship Program for Developing Countries is now open. The Joint Japan/World Bank Graduate Scholarship Program (JJ/WBGSP) is open to citizens of developing countries with relevant professional experience and a history of supporting their countries’ development efforts who are applying for a Master’s degree program in a development-related topic.

Subject to available funding, JJWBGSP offers scholarships for 26 Participating Programs at universities in U.S., Europe, Africa, Oceania and Japan in key areas of development, including economic policy management, tax policy, and infrastructure management.

After earning their degree, developing countries scholars commit to return to their home country to use their new skills and contribute to their countries social and economic development. Only those who applied (or are applying) and get admitted to one of these 45 programs are eligible to apply for a JJWBGSP Scholarship in 2023.

Program Details

• Host institution: Partner universities. Please check the full list below
• Fields of study: Eligible Master Degree. Please check the full list below
• Number of awards: Not specified.
• Duration: Applicants program duration.
• Target group: Open for candidates of eligible countries. Please check the Please check the full list below.

World Bank Scholarship Program Benefits

The Joint Japan/World Bank Graduate Scholarship will provide selected applicants with the following benefits:

• Economy class air travel between your home country and the host university at the start of your study program and immediately following the end of the scholarship period. In addition to the two-way air travel, scholars will receive a US $500 travel allowance for each trip;
• Tuition for your graduate program and the cost of basic medical insurance obtained through the university.
• While on campus during the scholarship period, a monthly subsistence allowance to cover all living expenses (accommodations, food, etc., including books). The amount of the allowance varies depending on the host country.

Eligible Countries for the World Bank Scholarship

The 2023 Joint Japan/World Bank Graduate Scholarship Program (JJ/WBGSP) is open for the citizens of the following countries: Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Congo, Rep., Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Dominica, Egypt, Arab Rep., El Salvador, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gambia, The, Ghana, Grenada, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iran, Islamic Rep., Iraq, Kenya, Kiribati, Kosovo,

Kyrgyz Republic, Lao PDR, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Micronesia, Fed. Sts., Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Rwanda, Samoa, São Tomé and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, St Lucia, St Vincent, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Tunisia, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, West Bank and Gaza, Yemen, Republic of, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Japan and World Bank Scholarship Eligible Programs

Below is the complete list of JJWBGSP Participating Programs accepting applications under Window #1.

1. University of Birmingham : MSc Conflict, State Building and Development
2. University of Wisconsin-Madison : Educational Policy Studies
3. Vrije Universiteit – KIT : Health Systems Policy and Management
4. University of California-Berkeley : Master of Development Practice
5. University of Hong Kong : Master of Urban Design (MUD)
6. Johns Hopkins : Master of Public Health

The following is the list of JJWBGSP Participating Programs accepting applications under Window #2.

1. Australian National University
   • Master of Climate Change
   • Master of Environmental and Resource Economics
   • Master of Environmental Management and Development
   • Master of Public Policy
2. Brandeis University
   • Master of Arts in Sustainable International Development 1
   • Master of Arts in Conflict Resolution and Coexistence
   • Master in Global Health Policy and Management
3. Columbia University – School of International and Public Affairs
   • MPA in Economic Policy Management 2
   • MPA in Development Practice
   • Master of Public Administration
4. Erasmus University Rotterdam -IHS : Master of Urban Management and Development
5. Harvard – Kennedy School of Government : Master of Public Administration in International Development
6. IHE Delft Institute :
   • MSc in Water and Sustainable Development — Water, Food and Energy Track
   • MSc in Water and Sustainable Development — Water Hazards, Risks and Climate Track
   • MSc in Water and Sustainable Development — Water and Health Track
   • MSc in Water and Sustainable Development — Water Resources and Ecosystem Health Track
7. Keio University : Master in Taxation Policy and Management
8. London School of Economics
   • MSc Development Management
   • MSc Development Studies
   • MSc Global Health Policy
   • MSc International Social and Public Policy
9. National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS) : Tax Course of the Public Finance Program
10. Saitama University : International Graduate Program on Civil and Environmental Engineering
11. SOAS University of London : MSc International Finance and Development
12. Stanford University : Master in International Policy
13. Université Clermont-Auvergne – FERDI : Master in Economic Policy Management
14. University of Leeds : Master of Public Health (International)
15. University of Oxford :
    • Blavatnik School of Government: Master of Public Policy
    • Department of International Development: MSc in Refugee and Forced Migration Studies
16. University of Sussex
    • MA Environment, Development and Policy
    • MA Food and Development
    • MSc Climate Change, Development and Policy
    • MA Migration and Global Development
17. University of Tokyo
    • Graduate School of Public Policy (GraSPP): Master of Public Policy, International Program
    • Graduate School of Agriculture and Life Science: International Program on Agricultural Development Studies
18. University of Tsukuba : Master’s Program in Economic and Public Policy
19. Yokohama National University : Infrastructure Management Program.

World Bank Scholarship Program Eligibility

To be considered for the Joint Japan/World Bank Scholarship (JJ/WBGSP), applicants must:

1. Be a national of a World Bank member developing country (check the list above);
2. Not hold dual citizenship of any developed country;
3. Be in good health;
4. Hold a Bachelor’s (or equivalent) degree earned at least 3 years prior to the Application Deadline date;
5. Have 3 years or more of recent development-related work experience after earning a Bachelor’s (or equivalent) degree;
6. Be employed in development-related work in a paid full-time position at the time of submitting the scholarship application. The only exception to this criterion is for developing country nationals from a country that will be on the updated list of Fragile and Conflict States provided to applicants in the Application Guidelines for each call for scholarships.
7. On or before the Scholarship Application Deadline date, be admitted unconditionally (except for funding) for the upcoming academic year to at least one of the JJ/WBGSP preferred university master’s programs located outside the applicant’s country of citizenship and country of residence. The letter of admission must be uploaded before submitting your application.
8. Not be an Executive Director, his/her alternate, and/or staff of any appointment of the World Bank Group or a close relative of the aforementioned by blood or adoption with the term “close relative” defined as Mother, Father, Sister, Half-sister, Brother, Half-brother, Son, Daughter, Aunt, Uncle, Niece, or Nephew.

Similar opportunities

1. Government of Romania Scholarship;
2. Swedish Government Scholarship;
3. Taiwan Government Scholarship.

How to Apply for the World Bank Scholarship Program