New Council on Tackling Japan’s Population Decline Problem to Be Launched at End of Oct.

The Yomiuri Shimbun

1:00 JST, October 5, 2025

A new organization that aims to have experts in the private sector discuss measures to combat population decline will be launched on Oct. 27.

The organization, tentatively named the “conference for choosing the future,” will replace the Population Strategy Council.

The group intends to work with South Korea, which is also dealing with an aging population and a declining birth rate, on such activities as making proposals and conducting research.

To mark its launch, a commemorative symposium will be held in Tokyo on the day.

The organization will comprise representatives from economic organizations, labor unions such as the Japanese Trade Union Confederation, or Rengo, and local government officials. It will also call on young people and women to actively take part.

The group is expected to be co-chaired by Nippon Steel Corp. Honorary Chairman Akio Mimura and former Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Hiroya Masuda.

The declining birth rate in Japan has become even more serious, highlighted by the number of births falling below 700,000 for the first time in 2024.

South Korea faces a similar urgent problem, with its total fertility rate standing at 0.75, significantly lower than Japan’s 1.15.

At a summit meeting in August, the Japanese and South Korean governments agreed to begin intergovernmental dialogue on declining birth rates, aging populations and population declines.

The organization will also advance joint research between Japan and South Korea at the private-sector level. Both countries will establish new consultative bodies and are coordinating to hold symposia in each country.

The group will also work to facilitate dialogue and exchanges with young people and women and will disseminate information via social media.

The government has published white papers on population issues in the past, and the conference will consider compiling similar documents.

The Population Strategy Council, which was established in July 2023, concluded its activities by compiling its proposals in August. It released a report in 2024 stating that more than 40% of municipalities, or 744 nationwide, are at risk of disappearing.