Is MEXT's 'Minna no Haiko Project' Actually Useful? — Turning Listed Closed Schools into Real Projects [2026 Edition]

Overview and Role of the Project

The four strands of the project launched in 2010, and why MEXT does not broker matches

Over the 20-year period from FY2004 to FY2023, a cumulative total of 8,850 schools were closed. Annual closures were 428 to 597 up to FY2015 and 279 to 405 from FY2016, with 298 in FY2023.[2] Of the 7,612 closed school buildings still standing, 5,661 (74.4%) are currently in use, while 1,951 (25.6%) are not. Of those, 1,503 have no decided use.

MEXT launched the "Minna no Haiko Project" in September 2010. It promotes the reuse of closed school facilities by gathering and publishing information on facilities seeking new uses nationwide, holding events and introducing reuse cases.[4]

The Project's Core Function

The Minna no Haiko Project does four main things:

1. Gathering and publishing facility information. MEXT collects information from municipalities on closed schools seeking new uses and publishes the list on its website (updated monthly)
2. Holding events. The closed school reuse promotion events (called closed school reuse matching events from FY2019 to FY2022) include a matching time where municipalities run booths
3. Publishing a case collection. The Closed School Reuse Case Collection (March 2023) carries one case from each of the 47 prefectures
4. Subsidy information. The project page posts a list of national subsidy programs by type of new use (as of April 2026)

The list page asks readers to direct questions about listings and how to apply to the facility office of the local government concerned.[5] Operators find facilities in the list and then contact each municipality's office directly.

Project Contact Information

The contact is the Regional Promotion Section of the Facilities Grants Division, Department of Facilities Planning and Disaster Prevention, Minister's Secretariat, MEXT. Phone 03-5253-4111 (main) or 03-6734-2464 (direct); email minpro@mext.go.jp.

A municipality that wants to list a facility, or update a listing, contacts the Facilities Grants Division following the notice on the list page. The forms are the listing form (Excel) and, for removal, a request form for deletion from the list.

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Listed Information and Search Method

How the regional PDFs and index are organized, the fields on each facility page, closures by prefecture and counts by use

Current Listings and Update Frequency

The list is updated monthly. The current edition is based on information as of 1 September 2026, and may include facilities whose call has ended or whose terms have changed.[5]

The index lists each facility on one row, with prefecture, municipality, school name and address.[1] Counting the rows of the index retrieved on 14 September 2026 gives 456 (our count).

Besides the index, the list is published as 12 regional PDF files. There is no online search function, so you download the files and check them yourself.

Data Fields in Each Listing

Each regional PDF gives one page per facility, showing address, access, contact, zoning, land area, structure, facility type, year completed, building area, total floor area, number of floors, what is being sought, lease or transfer conditions, remarks, exterior photos, floor plans, classroom layout and the surroundings.[6]

These fields show the size and location of the facility and the conditions the municipality sets. "What is being sought" and "Lease or transfer conditions" reflect the municipality's intentions and are key guides when drafting a proposal.

Regional Distribution of Closed Schools

Over the period from FY2004 to FY2023, Hokkaido had the most closures by far at 859 schools, followed by Iwate (331), Fukushima (330), Tokyo (300), and Kumamoto (282).[2] Tokyo ranks fourth, so it is not the case that metropolitan areas necessarily have few closures.

Which uses suit a site depends on its location. For businesses that rely on visitors (cafés, lodging, tourism), check the expected number of visitors; for businesses whose main income comes from public reimbursement (disability welfare, elderly care), check expected users and whether staff can be recruited, site by site.

Counts by Use

Counting school buildings and gymnasiums separately, the most common main use is schools (excluding universities) at 4,191 (40.5% of uses), followed by community sports facilities at 1,693 (16.4%), company and startup support facilities at 1,207 (11.7%), social education and cultural facilities at 1,206 (11.7%), and welfare and medical facilities at 735 (7.1%). Welfare and medical facilities are down from 774 (7.7%) in the previous survey.[2]

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The Matching Process

Step-by-step from finding a facility to inquiry, negotiation, and contract

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

Step 1: Municipal Registration

An example of how a municipality gets a facility onto the list:

1. Begin exploring reuse options as soon as the closure policy is decided
2. Form a cross-departmental team involving education, planning, asset management, and other relevant divisions
3. Decide the direction for reuse and apply to the Facilities Grants Division using the forms, following the notice on the list page
4. The facility appears at the next monthly update

Start considering reuse as soon as the closure policy is decided. The longer a building stands unused, the more it deteriorates.

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 what is being sought
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 steps might run as follows:

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

Using a school facility built with national subsidy for a non-school purpose within the restricted period requires the minister's approval and repayment to the treasury. Where certain requirements are met, no repayment is needed and a report completes the procedure.[7] A rent-free disposal of a building 10 or more years after the subsidized work was completed is one such case.

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Using the Reuse Promotion Events

What the FY2025 event included, how to apply and whom to contact, and what to prepare

Event Overview

MEXT held closed school reuse matching events from FY2019 to FY2022 and has held closed school reuse promotion events since FY2023. The FY2025 event took place on 17 October in the auditorium on the third floor of MEXT's East Building, with a government briefing and three case presentations followed by a matching time, in which municipalities seeking uses for their facilities ran booths and participants exchanged information freely.[8]

You can ask municipal officials directly about the condition of a building and what the municipality has in mind, which the documents do not cover.

Applying and Contact

For FY2025, applications were taken for municipal booths and for general participation; general participation closed when it reached capacity. Check the event page for the next event. The contact is minpro@mext.go.jp.

Preparation Before Attending

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

• A one-page business concept summary that states the service type, scale, and facility requirements
• A prioritized list of target regions, ranked even if you are considering several
• A rough capital plan covering renovation budget and funding sources
• One or two comparable cases, which make a proposal more convincing

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Municipal Strategy

Early action, cross-department coordination, three examples of building local agreement, and operator selection

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 the closure decision. Use the period between the closure decision and the actual closure to look for operators in parallel.

Cross-department coordination — connecting education, planning, finance, welfare, and economic development — broadens the range of viable uses. The subsidy programs available also differ by department.

Three Examples of Building Local Agreement from the Case Collection

MEXT's case collection carries one case from each of the 47 prefectures. We picked three that built local agreement in different ways.[9]

Example 1: Community representatives deliberate and form their own operating body (Nishiwaga Town, Iwate) The former Etchuhata Elementary School became the small-scale multifunctional home "Yukitsubaki no Sato". Representatives of the four administrative districts of the former school zone met more than ten times and decided to use it for community welfare, and in February 2011, before the school closed, community representatives set up an NPO that became the operator.

Example 2: A university coordinates repeated working groups (Nagaoka City, Niigata) The former Shimada Elementary School became an employment support facility for persons with disabilities. The city asked a local university to coordinate, and four working groups of residents and education stakeholders met twelve times each. The operator was chosen through a simplified evaluation proposal.

Example 3: A residents' council with the city as observer (Yokkaichi City, Mie) The former Higashi-Kyohoku Elementary School became a multi-purpose child-rearing support facility that houses Kyohoku Kodomoen, among others. City staff joined the council that residents set up to consider the school's use as observers, and reflected residents' views in the city's policy.

In all three, the municipality learned residents' wishes early. Of the 7,211 school buildings at existing closed schools, 3,580 (49.6%) had not conducted any community opinion survey.[10]

Designing the Operator Selection Process

In the Nagaoka example, the operator was selected through a simplified evaluation proposal. The municipality sets the evaluation criteria, drawing on items such as operational continuity, community contribution, financial soundness, and facility maintenance planning.

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Steps for Private Operators

Narrowing your criteria, checking the regional classification, inquiring early, property disposal and subsidy programs

Five things operators looking for a facility on the list should do first.

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: Check the Regional Classification in Advance

Operators in disability welfare or elderly care should check the regional classification (chiiki kubun) of the facility's location, and the reimbursement rates it sets, before drawing up a financial plan.

Tip 3: Inquire Early

When a facility looks promising, submit an inquiry promptly, even before completing all internal due diligence. The list may still include facilities whose call has ended or whose terms have changed (note on MEXT's list page). An inquiry carries no commitment.

Tip 4: Understand Property Disposition Procedures

Closed school facilities are the property of local governments, and using a facility built with national subsidy for a non-school purpose requires a property disposal procedure. A rent-free disposal of a building 10 or more years after the subsidized work was completed needs only a report, with no repayment to the treasury. MEXT's "Property Disposition Procedures Handbook" (March 2026) is the detailed guide.

Tip 5: Check How Subsidies Can Be Combined

MEXT's list of subsidy programs includes MAFF's Rural Promotion Grant, the Cabinet Office's Regional Future Grant and MHLW's Social Welfare Facility Development Subsidy, among others.[11] Whether the same cost can be funded twice is set program by program, so check the rules. For details, see "Subsidies for Closed School Reuse: All 6 Ministries Covered."

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Next Steps

Three actions to take today

Three concrete actions to take right now:

Action 1: Download and review the PDF for your target region Go to MEXT's list of closed school facilities currently seeking new uses and download the regional PDF. Count how many listings meet your criteria. This screening is the starting line.

Action 2: Check the next reuse promotion event and apply Check MEXT's event page for the next event and apply. Send questions to minpro@mext.go.jp.

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 "Abandoned School × Welfare Facility Revenue Model."

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Steps

Complete Guide to Closed School Reuse — Facility Selection to Proposal

The end-to-end process: finding facilities through the Minna no Haiko Project, scoping the renovation, and preparing a winning proposal.

Abandoned School × Welfare Facility Revenue Model

Using Type B continuous employment support as the example: base fee tiers from June 2026, the rule on user wages, how to work out facility cost differences, and three cases.

References

Minna no Haiko Project (MEXT) — Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (2026)

Minna no Haiko Project: List of Closed School Facilities Currently Seeking New Uses — Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (September 2026)

List of Closed School Facilities Currently Seeking New Uses (Index), 1 September 2026 edition — Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (September 2026)

Survey on the Utilization Status of Closed School Facilities (FY2024) — Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (March 2025)

Closed School Reuse Case Collection (March 2023 Edition) — Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (March 2023)

FY2025 Closed School Reuse Promotion Event (Tokyo) — Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (2025)

Main National Subsidy Programs Available for Using Closed School Facilities (as of April 2026) — Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (April 2026)

Overview of Property Disposition Procedures — Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (March 2025)

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