The 1% Support Scheme in Ichikawa City

Outcomes

The scheme provides citizens in Ichikawa City with important services which could not be funded by the local authority. More importantly, the activities of the nonprofit organisations improve the wellbeing of groups of citizens who are at risk of being marginalised and isolated.

In 2014, the scheme allowed large grants to be given to the following nonprofit organisations:

• 245,000 yen for an organisation providing visits to homes of the elderly and teaching them how to sing or helping them just to spend time singing together;
• 285,000 yen for an organisation which organises football matches for occasional football players and helps citizens to put together teams;
• 300,000 yen for the environmental organisation Kokubugawa Koinobori Gikaii to protect the water quality of a local river by cleaning and organising awareness raising activities;
• 597,000 yen for an organisation providing support for people with disabilities to take up sports activities, in particular swimming;
• 453,000 yen for an organisation which promotes international exchange between local residents and non-Japanese citizens;
• 550,000 yen to enable Ichikawa Kids’ Cultural Station to work with parents and children to make Ichikawa City more children-friendly;
• 568,000 yen for a cultural organisation organising concerts in Ichikawa City;
• 1,000,000 yen for an organisation connecting local people, in particular new people who have just moved to Ichikawa and older residents.

In total, 117 local nonprofit organisations received funding in 2014. As a representative of an organization supporting people with disabilities suggested: “The funding through the 1% scheme has allowed us to provide swimming courses for people with disabilities four times a month and helped them to pay the fee for using the swimming pool”.

One early indicator of success is that other municipalities have taken inspiration from the Ichikawa 1% scheme and adopted similar methods. The ‘followers’ include: