Population Decline Unavoidable, Must be Managed; Regional Areas Hit First, but Problem Affects Nation
20:00 JST, April 26, 2024
Even if the trend of low birthrates can be controlled to some extent, long-term population decline is inevitable. It is necessary to simultaneously come up with measures to sustain regional and economic vitality even with a smaller population size than now.
To make the most of existing resources while dealing with a declining population, municipal mergers and encouraging people to live closer to city centers should be actively discussed. Major regional cities must play a role in enhancing employment and education and also stemming population outflow to metropolitan areas.
Measures to attract young people will be meaningless if they simply become competitions among neighboring municipalities to try to “steal” them from each other.
The central government and governments in bigger urban areas need to be conscious that population decline is not just a local problem, and that they must support regional areas. The Noto Peninsula Earthquake highlighted the difficulties in rescue operations, recovery and reconstruction when disasters occur in depopulated areas. It is important to hone disaster mitigation capabilities in ordinary times.
As the working population shrinks, foreign human resources will be a valuable part of the labor force. The central government will establish a “training and employment” program that focuses on fostering skills of foreign workers. It is important to effectively implement the program to increase the number of people with the residence status of specified skilled worker.
The government should formulate a medium- to long-term systematic national strategy for foreign human resources with an eye on the future.
Advancing digitization is essential for improving productivity, but a lack of human resources is the biggest obstacle for companies and local governments. According to the Cabinet Secretariat, about 55% of all municipalities have three or fewer digital-related staff members, and it is not unusual for municipalities to have one or none.
It is necessary for multiple municipalities to work together in recruiting capable people. Small and medium-sized enterprises suffering from a shortage of human resources should also be supported.
"Society" POPULAR ARTICLE
-
Cherry tree falls on man on Sanneizaka steps leading to famous Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto
-
Tokyo District Court Rules AI Cannot Be Issued Patents; Law Recognizes Only ‘Natural Persons’ as Inventors
-
Small Animal That Appears to be Mouse Found in Chojuku Bread Products; Some Brands on Same Production Line to be Recalled Voluntarily
-
Earthquake Hits Japan’s Ibaraki, Tochigi, Chiba Prefectures, No Risk of Tsunami
-
Man Repels Bear Attack in Hokkaido by Kicking its Face After Encountering 2 Bears While Sightseeing
JN ACCESS RANKING
- Weakening Yen Adds Complexity to BOJ’s Rate Hike Decisions; Rising Commodity Prices may Impact ‘Virtuous Cycle’ Efforts
- Japanese Seafood Exports to China Sink 57% in FY23; U.S. Becomes Largest Seafood Export Destination
- 70% of Japan Companies to Raise Pay Scales in FY 2024
- Minutes Show Policymaker Wants BOJ to Consider Further Rate Hikes Further
- 48.6% of Global Patent Applications Related to All-Solid-State Batteries Came from Japanese Firms; Panasonic Tops List