Statement by the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, Japan
Yasuhisa Shiozaki

The Asia-Pacific Group Ministerial Meeting,International Labour Conference, 105th Session, 2016

June 8, 2016
Salle 12, Palais des Nations
Geneva, Switzerland


Thank you chair, I will make a statement on behalf of the Japanese Government.

I sincerely appreciate all the efforts India has made as the coordinator of the Asian-Pacific Government Group for the past year. I also welcome the proposition of Iran to take on the responsibility of being the next coordinator for the upcoming year.

First, I would like to share　some of our labour policy responses in early stage of post World War II era.

Japan's industrial production plunged to 10 percent of pre-war level. Japan needed to develop society where people can live with satisfaction through steady growth and sound labour market conditions. Therefore, in a period of only 5 years beginning from 1945, the Japanese Government introduced a Trade Union Law, a Labour Relations Adjustment Law, a Labour Standards Law, an Employment Security Law and a Labour Insurance System in order to make an economic foundation for the coming development.

Japan also established the basis of social security by introducing public universal health insurance and public universal pension system in 1961, well before Japan passed the threshold of aging society.

Japan is now facing difficulties associated with demographic challenges such as "declining population", "declining labour force", "aging population" and "low birthrates". The Abe Cabinet is the first ever in Japan to resolutely address these demographic challenges. The Cabinet is making every effort to develop a new sustainable social and economic system where people can live with fair satisfaction by achieving strong economic growth and redistributing its fruits, the virtuous cycle of growth and redistribution.

The industrial structural reform is indispensable to achieve economic growth in spite of the demographic challenges. In addition, labour market structural reform including "women's active participation", "the elderly's active participation", "equal pay for equal work" and "tackle against the practices of long working hours" is crucially essential. These policies we believe will lead to "Employment Generation for Inclusive Growth".

Although our neighbors in the Asia-Pacific region have achieved remarkable economic growth over the years, they are now facing challenges as to how to raise living standards more and improve further the employment security and quality of work.

As the rapid aging population, faster than in Japan, is predicted in the Asia-Pacific region, urgent development of social safety-net is imperative. We would be grateful if our experiences and practices, and even failures could help support the resolution of pressing challenges in the Asia-Pacific region.

Over the last half century, Japan has provided international cooperation in helping to improve the labour legislation and labour insurance system in many countries in the Asia-Pacific region through deploying Japanese professionals to target countries and conducting capacity-building for trainees in Japan, in cooperation with the ILO. We have also provided support for implementing labour policies in cooperation with the Japan International Cooperation Agency, JICA.

Japan is determined to strengthen its support to achieve Employment Generation for Inclusive Growth.

I very much look forward to meeting all fellow ministers again at the 16th ILO Asia-Pacific Regional Meeting in December this year. I would like to truly thank the Government of the Republic of Indonesia and the officials for hosting this event.

As the host country of the last meeting, the Japanese Government outlined our "experiences of employment measures that are responsive to growth in the aftermath of natural disasters, including our good practices and lessons that we learned in the past" for the outcome. We were happy that this work led to the revision of the ILO's Employment Recommendation No. 71 adopted in 1944.

The Government of Japan will continue to provide our utmost support for future ILO activities.

Thank you.