Kosaka owes it's international flavor to the JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) training program participants that call Kosaka home while on training programs in mining technology. As of April 2005, Kosaka has hosted 473 participants from 72 different countries spanning all continents except for Antarctica.

JICA is the agency that helps the Japanese government utilize its development aid to carry out technology transfer to developing countries. Kosaka is the base of operations for JICA's training courses in the field of mining.

Kosaka became the new home of the JICA training programs in mining technology when MINETEC (International Institute of Mining Technology) was moved to Kosaka in 1990. MINETEC was founded in 1970 and originally based in Fujimiya City, Shizuoka Prefecture. MINETEC organizes and runs the training courses. Starting in 1985, due the the inflation of the yen, the Japanese mining sector experienced a time of depression and intense restructuring. During this time, the decision was made to move MINETEC to Akita Prefecture.

The northeast corner of Akita Prefecture (Odate City, Kazuno City and Kosaka Town) was historically a center of development for Japanese mining technology. The JICA training courses were moved to this area to utilize the old mine sites, take advantage of the concentration of mine related human resources, and help the local communities recover from the shock of mine closures.