How to Use MEXT's 'Minna no Haiko Project' — From Registration to Matching [2026 Edition]

Due to Japan's declining birthrate, approximately 450–470 schools close every year. Over the 20-year period from FY2004 to FY2023, a cumulative total of 8,850 schools were closed. Of the 7,612 closed school buildings still standing, 5,661 (74.4%) are currently in use, while approximately 1,951 (25.6%) remain unused.

To promote productive reuse of these facilities, Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) launched the "Minna no Haiko Project" (Everyone's Closed School Project) in September 2010.

The Project's Core Function

In essence, the Minna no Haiko Project provides an information platform. It performs four specific functions:

1. Aggregating and publishing facility information: Collecting data on closed schools seeking operators from municipalities and publishing it monthly on the MEXT website
2. Hosting matchmaking events: Running booth-style networking sessions where municipalities can meet prospective operators directly
3. Publishing case study collections: A collection of 47 reuse cases, one per prefecture (published March 2023)
4. Compiling subsidy information: Consolidating relevant programs from the ministries of Agriculture, Land, Internal Affairs, Cabinet Office, and Health, Labour and Welfare

A critical point: MEXT provides only the platform — it does not directly broker matches between municipalities and operators. Operators must find facility listings themselves through the project website and then contact each municipality's designated office directly.

Project Contact Information

The project is administered by MEXT's Facility Grants Division:

• Phone: 03-6734-2464
• Email: minpro@mext.go.jp

Event participation applications and listing inquiries can both be directed to this address.

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Current Listings and Update Frequency

As of October 1, 2025, 418 closed school facilities are listed and publicly available, updated monthly.

The listings are published as 12 regional PDF files. There is currently no online search function — users must download the files and review them manually.

Data Fields in Each Listing

Each facility entry includes the following information:

The "Preferred Use" field is particularly valuable — it reflects the municipality's expectations and serves as a key guide when drafting a proposal.

Regional Distribution of Closed Schools

Closed schools are heavily concentrated in depopulated areas. Over the period from FY2004 to FY2023, Hokkaido had the most closures by far at 859 schools, followed by Nagano (331), Niigata (330), Hyogo (300), and Iwate (282). Major metropolitan areas such as Tokyo, Osaka, and Kanagawa have relatively few closures.

This geographic concentration has important implications for business planning. In depopulated areas, footfall-dependent businesses (cafés, lodging, tourism) face structural challenges, while service models based on institutional revenue — such as disability welfare or elderly care facilities — are largely unaffected by location. Matching use type to the physical and demographic context of a facility is fundamental to success.

Breakdown of Existing Reuse Categories

Among the 5,661 currently utilized facilities in the FY2024 survey, the most common use is continued school operation (post-merger) at 40.5% (4,191 cases), followed by community sports facilities at 16.4% (1,693), business/startup support at 11.7% (1,207), community/cultural facilities at 11.7% (1,206), and welfare/medical facilities at 7.1% (735).

Welfare facilities account for just 735 cases (7.1%), indicating significant untapped potential for further expansion.

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The pathway from the Minna no Haiko Project to active reuse involves three broad steps.

Step 1: Municipal Registration

The process by which a municipality lists a facility is as follows:

1. Begin exploring reuse options in parallel with the decision to close the school (early action is critical)
2. Form a cross-departmental team involving education, planning, asset management, and other relevant divisions
3. Determine the desired direction for reuse and submit a listing application to MEXT
4. The facility is added at the next monthly update

Starting reuse planning at the same time as announcing closure is the single most important success factor. Waiting years after closure risks deterioration that may render the building unusable.

Step 2: Operator Inquiry

For operators searching for a facility, the process is:

1. Download the regional PDF from the MEXT Minna no Haiko Project page
2. Review listed facilities for size, location, and stated preferred use
3. Contact the municipal office listed for any facility of interest — directly
4. In the initial inquiry, briefly introduce the business concept, scale, funding outline, and operational structure

MEXT plays no role in this step. Operators must independently identify facilities and initiate contact with municipalities.

Step 3: Direct Negotiation

After the initial inquiry, the typical progression is:

1. Initial discussion on reuse terms (lease, sale, rent-free, etc.)
2. Competitive proposal (RFP) process if the municipality chooses to run one
3. Property disposition procedures (required when a school built with national subsidies is repurposed during the restriction period)
4. Contract execution, renovation, and opening

For facilities where 10 or more years have passed since national subsidy completion, national repayment is not required, and procedures are substantially simplified. For public-interest purposes, filing a report (rather than obtaining approval) is typically sufficient.

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Event Overview

MEXT periodically hosts matchmaking events as part of the Minna no Haiko Project. These are booth-style sessions where municipalities exhibit and speak directly with operators interested in closed school reuse.

The key advantage over PDF-based searches is the ability to speak directly with municipal officials. Information about a building's actual condition, the municipality's flexibility on terms, and unstated preferences is rarely captured in documents — direct conversation surfaces it.

How to Apply

Participation applications are accepted at:

• Email: minpro@mext.go.jp

Participation is open to any organization with an interest in closed school reuse, regardless of legal form or scale. Dates are posted on the MEXT Minna no Haiko Project webpage.

Preparation Before Attending

To make the most of the event, prepare the following in advance:

• One-page business concept summary: Clearly state the service type, scale, and facility requirements
• Prioritized list of target regions: Even if considering multiple areas, rank them
• Rough capital plan: Renovation budget and funding sources (loans, subsidies, equity)
• Reference to comparable cases: Being able to cite one or two analogous success stories significantly increases credibility

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For municipalities holding closed school assets, here is how to use the Minna no Haiko Project most effectively.

Core Strategy: Early Action and Cross-Department Coordination

The most important factor is beginning reuse planning at the same time as announcing the school closure. Since closure decisions are typically announced years in advance, this window can be used to run parallel operator outreach.

Cross-department coordination — connecting education, planning, finance, welfare, and economic development — broadens the range of viable uses and enables combined subsidy applications.

Three Community Engagement Patterns

MEXT's case collection identifies three main patterns for community engagement in closed school reuse.

Pattern 1: Multi-stage Consultation Community representatives hold 10 or more meetings and form an NPO to self-operate. This approach — seen in the small-scale multifunctional home conversion in Nishiwaga Town, Iwate — channels community attachment into governance, but requires significant time.

Pattern 2: University Coordination A neutral third party (a university or consultant) facilitates multiple working groups. The Nagaoka City case in Niigata — 4 working groups meeting 12 times each — exemplifies this model.

Pattern 3: Citizen Committee + Observer A resident-led deliberative body makes decisions, with the municipality attending as observer. Used in the certified childcare center conversion in Yokkaichi City, Mie.

Regardless of pattern, early engagement with community opinion is essential. Among unused closed schools, 49.6% had not conducted any community opinion survey, indicating that the absence of community engagement is a leading cause of stalled reuse.

Designing the Operator Selection Process

A simplified evaluation-style proposal (RFP) lowers barriers for emerging operators. Typical evaluation criteria include operational continuity, community contribution, financial soundness, and facility maintenance planning.

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The following practices are common to operators who have successfully pursued closed school reuse through the Minna no Haiko Project.

Tip 1: Define Specific Requirements

A vague desire to "do something with a closed school" will not move negotiations forward. Articulating a specific service type, user capacity, and facility requirements before beginning the search makes initial discussions far more productive.

For example: "After-school day service for 10 users; requires 2 classrooms plus one multipurpose space; accessible toilet renovation assumed; target lease under ¥50,000/month" — this level of specificity enables immediate, substantive conversations.

Tip 2: Verify the Regional Reimbursement Multiplier in Advance

For operators in disability welfare or elderly care, the regional classification (chiiki kubun) of the facility's location directly affects reimbursement per unit and therefore revenue projections. Remote-area closed schools are often in lower-classified zones, which should be factored into financial modeling before pursuing a specific site.

Tip 3: Inquire Early

Interest in listed facilities tends to be sequential — the first serious inquiry often leads to preference in negotiation. When a facility looks promising, submit an inquiry promptly, even before completing all internal due diligence. An inquiry carries no commitment.

Tip 4: Understand Property Disposition Procedures

Many operators assume that closed schools involve complex national property procedures. In practice, facilities where 10 or more years have elapsed since the completion of nationally subsidized construction do not require national repayment, and procedures are largely administrative. MEXT's "Property Disposition Procedures Handbook" (March 2025 edition) provides a clear reference.

Tip 5: Design a Multi-Ministry Subsidy Strategy

Closed school reuse is eligible for subsidy programs across multiple ministries. Combining grants from the Ministry of Agriculture (mountain/fishing village revitalization), the Cabinet Office (regional revitalization), and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (welfare facility construction) can significantly reduce the operator's share of renovation costs. For details, see "Subsidies for Closed School Reuse: All 6 Ministries Covered."

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Three concrete actions to take right now:

Action 1: Download and review the PDF for your target region Go to the MEXT Minna no Haiko Project page and download the regional PDF listing. Count how many of the 418 current listings meet your criteria. This screening is the starting line.

Action 2: Apply for the next matchmaking event Contact MEXT (minpro@mext.go.jp) to ask about upcoming event dates and submit a participation application. Direct conversation with municipal officials yields higher-quality information than PDFs.

Action 3: Prepare a one-page business concept summary Summarize your service concept, scale, facility requirements, and rough funding plan in one page. This becomes your calling card for initial municipal contact.

For a complete walkthrough of the closed school reuse process, see "Complete Guide to Closed School Reuse — Facility Selection to Proposal." For financial modeling, see "Closed School × Welfare Facility Revenue Model."

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References

Minna no Haiko Project (MEXT) (2026)

List of Closed School Facilities Seeking Operators (as of October 1, 2025) (October 2025)

Survey on the Utilization Status of Closed School Facilities (FY2024) (March 2025)

Closed School Reuse Case Collection (March 2023 Edition) (March 2023)

Overview of Property Disposition Procedures (March 2025)