Tokyo LEADS is the next regional workshop under the World Bank’s LEADS [Learn. Adapt. Scale.] initiative, delivered in partnership with the World Bank Group Institute for Economic Development Tokyo Center, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB). 

The workshop will bring together representatives from the governments in the region, World Bank teams, JICA Ogata Research Institute, JADE, academia, and research institutions to conduct an in-depth review of selected research projects. This creates an opportunity to see how LEADS tools, methods, and evidence approaches are being extended to partner institutions and to strengthen a community of like-minded agencies working to embed evidence and adaptive learning across development programs.

About LEADS: Learn. Adapt. Scale.

A One World Bank Initiative to Drive Development Impact

The future of development holds immense promise—powered by science, driven by data, and grounded in evidence. As we face new opportunities to accelerate progress, the need for smarter, more adaptive approaches has never been stronger.

LEADS — Learn. Adapt. Scale. — is a One World Bank Group initiative that brings this vision to life. Created by the Development Economics Vice Presidency (DEC) and implemented in close collaboration with Regional Vice Presidencies, Verticals, IFC, and other global partners, LEADS equips project teams and government counterparts with the tools, methods, and mindsets to learn in real time, adapt course, and scale what works.

LEADS is the World Bank Group’s approach to placing science, learning, and adaptive delivery at the center of development operations. Through structured collaboration with government teams, the workshops refine project designs using the best available scientific evidence and set the foundation for real-time implementation support and scaling of what works. Please find more information on the success of LEADS in AFE and AFW here. 

At its heart, LEADS is about closing the gap between intention and impact.

TIME SESSION
8:30 - 9:30 AM Registration
9:30 - 9:45 AM

Welcome to the Workshop on Maximizing Development Impact in Japan

Hitoshi Hirata, Vice President, Japan International Cooperation Agency

Arianna Legovini, Director of Development Impact, World Bank Group

9:45 - 10:00 AM

Workshop roadmap

Nozomi Iwama, Senior Deputy Director General, Governance and Peacebuilding, JICA

Daniel Rogger, Senior Economist and Research Manager, World Bank Group

10:00 - 11:00 AM

Opening Panel: Using Evidence to Strengthen Operations

Hitoshi Hirata, Vice President, Japan International Cooperation Agency

Albert Park, Chief Economist, Asian Development Bank

Arianna Legovini, Director of Development Impact, World Bank Group

11:00 - 11:30 AM Coffee break
11:30 - 12:45 PM Clinic 1: Priority Policy Questions and Key Outcomes
12:45 - 1:45 PM Lunch
1:45 - 2:45 PM Methods 1: Causal Inference and Experimental Impact Evaluation
2:45 - 3:45 PM Methods 2: Non-experimental Impact Evaluation
3:45 - 4:10 PM Coffee break
4:10 - 5:10 PM Clinic 2:  Program roll-out plan and Impact Evaluation Strategy
5:10 - 5:25 PM Wrap-up of Day 1
5:25 - 6:30 PM Innovation Bazaar
7:00 - 9:00 PM Reception
TIME SESSION
9:00 - 9:15 AM Warm-up for the day: How well do you know your team?
9:15 - 10:15 AM Keynote: How Do We Build International Organizations So That They Become Learning Platforms
10:15 - 11:15 AM Clinic 3:  Data Strategy and Implementation Plan
11:15 - 11:45 AM Coffee break
11:45 - 12:45 PM Plenary Ignites: AI in Impact Evaluation in Infrastructure, Air Pollution, Health and Governance
12:45 - 1:45 PM Lunch
1:45 - 2:45 PM Methods 3: Costing Programs for Bigger Impact
2:45 - 3:05 PM Coffee break
3:05 - 4:30 PM Clinic 4: Embedding New Measurements (AI, Costing)
4:30 - 4:45 PM Wrap-up of Day 2
TIME SESSION
9:00 - 9:10 AM Welcome & expectations for final day
9:10 - 10:40 AM Clinic 5: Presentation revision
10:40 - 11:10 AM Coffee break
11:10 - 12:10 PM Plenary Ignites: How experiments can be integrated to assist policy (including analytical support during implementation)
12:10 - 1:10 PM Lunch
1:10 - 2:10 PM Team Presentations in Thematic Groups
2:10 - 2:35 PM Coffee break
2:35 - 3:55 PM Plenary Panel: Reporting back from workshop discussions on how to expand experimentation to maximize development impact in Japan more broadly
3:55 - 4:15 pm Closing Remarks and Ceremony
4:15 - 5:20 pm Closing Activity