Visit to Hiroshima Prefecture to Inspect the State of the Damage Caused by the Heavy Rain of July 2018
Cabinet Secretariat, Saturday, July 21, 2018
[Provisional Translation]
On July 21, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited Hiroshima Prefecture to inspect the state of the damage caused by the heavy rain of July 2018.
The Prime Minister first visited Hongo Lifelong Learning Center in Mihara City, which is serving as an evacuation center, where he listened to evacuees, and observed the bathing support activities provided by Self-Defense Force (SDF) units. In addition, the Prime Minister received a written request from Mr. Yoshinori Tenma, Mayor of Mihara City. The Prime Minister then visited Chomin Center (Community Center) in Saka Town, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, which is serving as an evacuation center, where he listened to evacuees.
Subsequently, the Prime Minister visited a site affected by landslide in Yano Town, Hiroshima City, and encouraged police department, fire department, and SDF units engaged in the search for missing people. He then visited sites affected by landslide in Kumano Town in Aki District and Kure City. Afterwards, the Prime Minister visited Yasuura Community Development Center, which is serving as an evacuation center in Kure City, where he listened to evacuees. Following that, at the Kure City Hall, the Prime Minister exchanged views with Mr. Hidehiko Yuzaki, Governor of Hiroshima Prefecture, Mr. Kazumi Matsui, Mayor of Hiroshima City, Mr. Yoshiake Shinhara, Mayor of Kure City, Mr. Takayuki Yoshida, Mayor of Saka Town, and others, and received written requests.
After the visit, the Prime Minister said,
“First and foremost, I would like to pray for peace for the souls of those who lost their lives in the recent heavy rain and offer my deepest condolences to their bereaved families. I would also like to extend my heartfelt sympathy to all who have been affected by this disaster.
I have just visited several affected sites and become even more aware of the tremendous damages caused by the recent heavy rain or the threats posed by natural disasters. At the evacuation centers, evacuees told me how scared they were and how they still have flashbacks of the fear they felt at the time. They also shared with me their earnest thoughts and demands, such as their challenging living conditions at the evacuation centers, in particular those in amidst of this extreme heat, and their concerns for the future. Hiroshima also suffered catastrophic damages from landslides four years ago and many precious lives were lost at that time. The Government has taken these experiences as valuable lessons to proceed with a review of our disaster responses. Despite these efforts, landslides occurred in over 300 locations from the recent heavy rain, and regrettably, many became victims of the disaster. We will conduct a thorough investigation to identify the issues from multiple perspectives, such as how evacuation points were arranged prior to the event and how weather information as well as the evacuation advisories and orders issued by the affected municipalities fed back to their actions to evacuate. After having done this, we will take responses swiftly and the necessary adequate measures.
On July 24, next week, we will designate the recent series of disasters as a ‘Disaster of Extreme Severity.’ We have also carried out further assessments since we were set to designate and decided to include additional assistance measures. For example, we will make kominkans (community learning centers), libraries, and non-public schools eligible for disaster recovery assistance. Furthermore, we will also make an arrangement that people who have been forced to take work leave because their companies were affected by the disaster are regarded as ‘unemployed,’ who are eligible to receive allowances, even if they have not actually left their jobs.
I will continue to fully engage in these works from the viewpoint of the people affected. With respect to budgetary measures, I would like the affected municipalities to continue their disaster response and recovery work without worrying about fiscal aspects.
The Government will continue to exert every effort towards providing supports for their daily lives, rebuilding their lives, and restoring ‘nariwai (occupations and livelihoods that sustain people’s daily lives),’ with the intention of doing everything possible in advance, upholding the perspective of the people affected.”
Lastly, the Prime Minister inspected the state of damage from the sky on an SDF helicopter.
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
11th Meeting of the Emergency Response Headquarters for the Heavy Rain in July 2018
Cabinet Secretariat, Sunday, July 22, 2018
[Provisional Translation]
On July 22, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held the 11th meeting of the Emergency Response Headquarters for the Heavy Rain in July 2018 at the Prime Minister’s Office.
Based on the discussion, the Prime Minister said,
“Yesterday, I visited some of the affected areas in Hiroshima Prefecture and listened to the earnest wishes and specific needs from evacuees related to their living at evacuation centers.
I spoke with the people affected and volunteers who were working hard every day in the extreme heat to clean up homes, and it further renewed my determination to ensure that the Government does everything in its power to rebuild people’s lives and restore ‘nariwai (occupations and livelihoods that sustain people’s daily lives)’ at the earliest possible date.
With regard to securing housing for the people affected, two days ago, Hiroshima Prefecture started accepting applications for provisional temporary housing, using private-sector rental housing, and approximately 450 applications have been received. Okayama Prefecture has already received approximately 1,100 applications, and they are being processed in order. With regard to ‘constructed’ emergency temporary housing, it has been decided that 140 dwellings would be built in Ehime Prefecture. In addition, in Hiroshima Prefecture, planned sites for such dwellings in Kure City, Mihara City, and Saka Town have been decided, and preparations are under way for construction. We will enhance our supports to further accelerate these efforts.
There is no time to lose in restoring nariwai. In the three prefectures I visited, there is a harsh reality that many people in the agricultural, forestry and fishery businesses as well as micro, small and medium-sized enterprises are losing motivation to resume their business, given that their homes and other properties have also been damaged. Successive closures of businesses could deal a severe blow to local economies; we must respond to this situation at the earliest day possible before they make such a choice. It is necessary to give those businesses hope for the future. Both in Ehime last week and Hiroshima yesterday, I received specific requests, such as the assistance to restore facilities through group subsidy grants, similar to what we had after the Kumamoto Earthquake. In the recent heavy rain, mikan oranges that had become harvestable after many years were washed away, and many micro enterprises including town shops were hit, necessitating carefully tailored measures that take into account the characteristics of each region. As summer holidays have started, it is also important to deal with harmful rumors or misinformation which could affect the tourism industry. We also need to fully protect local employment. Furthermore, the vast amounts of sediment that cover the affected areas are impeding the resumption of businesses and the rebuilding of people’s lives and, from the stand point to prevent secondary disasters, must be removed urgently. We have 400 billion yen of the contingency fund and the budget for disaster response and recovery in total. I ask that, under the leadership of the Team to Support the Daily Lives of Disaster Victims, you urgently compile a package of measures that makes full use of these funds for rebuilding the lives of the people affected and restoring nariwai with the cooperation of the relevant ministries and agencies.
Various consumer problems are expected to happen as the people affected make efforts to rebuild their lives; we have thus established a dedicated consumer hotline. Please ensure that the municipalities and people affected are fully aware of this hotline. Indeed, we have received several reports of malicious incidents involving false invoices targeted at people in the affected areas. For this reason, we have moved up the schedule for reviewing countermeasures to deal with such incidents, which we have been doing as part of our effort to protect consumers, and are to approve a package of false invoice countermeasures later today. I ask relevant ministries and agencies to coordinate in taking all possible measures to ensure peace of mind for the people affected who are working to rebuild their lives.
With the typhoon season coming up, the Government needs to ensure be fully prepared for all possible contingencies against disasters. I ask all of you to swiftly identify, inspect and take all the possible measures for the areas where risks for river flooding and landslides have been increased after the recent disaster.
I will continue to exert every effort for implementing emergency response and recovery work in the affected areas, rebuilding the lives of those affected, and restoring nariwai at the earliest day possible, from the standpoint of the people affected and following through with the front-line approach. I ask for your continued cooperation and efforts.”
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Ministerial Council on Acceptance and Inclusion of Foreign Human Resources
Cabinet Secretariat, Tuesday, July 24, 2018
[Provisional Translation]
On July 24, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attended a meeting of the Ministerial Council on Acceptance and Inclusion of Foreign Human Resources at the Prime Minister’s Office.
At the meeting, a discussion was held on the way forward for the consideration towards the establishment of a new system and on the direction of the review on comprehensive measures for the acceptance and inclusion of foreign human resources.
Based on the discussion, the Prime Minister said,
“Over the last two and a half years, the ratio of active job openings to applications has exceeded 1.0 for all 47 prefectures; meanwhile, the front lines of various activities, including micro, small and medium-sized enterprises nationwide, are facing increasingly serious personnel shortages. Therefore, needless to say, we must continue to push forward with improving productivity and securing domestic human resources. At the same time, we have a pressing need to establish schemes for accepting a wide range of foreign human resources who have specific expertise and skills so that they can hit the ground running.
I intend to proceed with the preparations with the aim to start accepting foreign human resources under a new system in April of next year. To this end, I ask that you promptly undertake necessary preparations, including the swift submission of bills and selection of eligible industries.
In addition, with more foreign nationals expected to reside in Japan, including those to be accepted under the new system, we have an important task to create an environment that welcomes foreign nationals who work, study, and live in Japan as members of society and in which they can live their lives without problems and difficulties.
Based on today’s Cabinet decision, the Ministry of Justice will make the overall arrangements for the development of the environment for accepting foreign nationals. I ask for the cooperation of relevant ministers, so that with the Ministry of Justice acting as a control tower, the relevant ministries can strengthen their collaboration while working together with local governments effectively and efficiently to develop such an environment. Furthermore, I also ask the Ministry of Justice to review fundamentally its existing organizational structure and develop new arrangements for the management of resident status and other matters in order to appropriately address the increases in foreign nationals residing in Japan.”
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Decision on the Dates of the Seventh Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD7)
Foreign Affairs, Friday, July 27, 2018
1. On July 27, the Cabinet approved the holding of the Seventh Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD7) in Yokohama from August 28 to 30, 2019, and the awards ceremony for the Third Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize on that occasion.
2. In addition, the TICAD Ministerial Meeting will be held in Tokyo on October 6 and 7 this year in order to follow-up TICAD VI, which was held in 2016, and prepare for TICAD7in 2019.
3. The Government of Japan will strongly support African development based on initiatives promoted by both the public and private sectors while capturing growth in Africa, the 21st Century’s greatest frontier, through the TICAD process.
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Press Conference by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe
Cabinet Secretariat, Friday, July 20, 2018
[Provisional Translation]
On July 20, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held a press conference at the Prime Minister's Office.
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Courtesy Call from the Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany
Cabinet Secretariat, Wednesday, July 25, 2018
[Provisional Translation]
On July 25, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe received a courtesy call from H.E. Mr. Heiko Maas, Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany, at the Prime Minister’s Office.
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Courtesy Call from Astronaut Kanai and Others and Briefing Session on the ISS Long-Duration Mission and Hayabusa2 Mission
Cabinet Secretariat, Wednesday, July 25, 2018
[Provisional Translation]
On July 25, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe received a courtesy call from Astronaut Norishige Kanai and others and then attended a briefing session on the International Space Station (ISS) long-duration mission and Hayabusa2 Mission at the Prime Minister's Office.
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Courtesy Call from Young Descendants of Former Inhabitants of the Northern Territories of Japan
Cabinet Secretariat, Thursday, July 26, 2018
[Provisional Translation]
On July 26, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe received a courtesy call from a group of junior high school students, who are third and fourth generation or other descendants of former inhabitants of the Northern Territories of Japan, at the Prime Minister’s Office.
After the seven students spoke about their thoughts toward the Northern Territories, the Prime Minister said,
“Thank you for visiting the Prime Minister’s Office today. You are fourth generation or other descendants of former residents of the islands. All of you came here with a desire to leverage the power of young people to get a peace treaty concluded in order to resolve the issue of the Four Northern Islands. You have just shared with me the feelings of your great-grandmothers and great-grandfathers as well as your grandfathers and grandmothers.
Even after more than 70 years have passed since the end of World War II, there is no peace treaty between Japan and Russia. Furthermore, the territorial issue has not been resolved. President Putin of Russia and I are in complete agreement that this is an extremely unnatural state of affairs. When President Putin visited Nagato, we held summit talks there; we discussed about carrying out joint economic activities on the Four Northern Islands. In addition, as the former island residents are at a very advanced age, we also talked about the possibility of making their visit to the Four Islands easier, fulfilling the wishes of the former island residents to visit their respective graves, or visit the sites they wish to go to, and to see the arrival of morning on the Four Islands. I also held a meeting with President Putin in May of this year; we shared the view that the joint economic activities on the Four Islands have reached a new level. The special grave visit by airplane also materialized just recently. Everyone probably found that visiting by airplane was far easier than visiting by ship.
I would like to bring this issue to resolution by persistently engaging in the negotiations. To that end, I hope the young generation like yourselves will more actively communicate the importance of resolving this issue and your wishes to turn the Four Islands into a bridge of friendship between Japan and Russia as you mentioned earlier.
I will continue to fully engage in this issue. Thank you very much for coming today.”
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Headquarters for Healthcare Policy
Cabinet Secretariat, Wednesday, July 25, 2018
[Provisional Translation]
On July 25, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held the 22nd meeting of the Headquarters for Healthcare Policy at the Prime Minister’s Office.
At the meeting, a discussion was held on the revisions of the Basic Principles of the Asia Health and Wellbeing Initiative, and an explanation was provided on cases related to the Healthcare Policy.
Based on the discussion and explanation, the Prime Minister said,
“Today, we revised the Basic Principles of the Asia Health and Wellbeing Initiative. In order to ensure health and longevity in all of Asia in the face of rapidly aging populations, it is critical that we lay the foundation and develop communities for people to lead healthy lives all in a well-balanced manner as well as enhance medical and nursing care and boost healthcare services for preventive and health maintenance that support such enhancements. We will collaborate with the people of Asia in pushing forward this initiative to materialize a Mt. Fuji-type healthcare (healthcare which employs a wide range of human resources, is functionally differentiated, and aims for highly specialized care).
In addition, we received briefings from four experts who presented their designated cases related to our healthcare and medical strategy.
I hope that, in particular, Dr. Kitahara and Dr. Kamada will continue to open a new frontier in international medicine.
The Next-Generation Medicine Infrastructure Act entered into force in May of this year, which enables us to utilize and access medical information in the form of Big Data. The Government will work together with members of the medical community, including President Yokokura of the Japan Medical Association, to make full use of such data so that it will lead to the development of new medical technologies.
Changing work styles of the employees and creating organizations where they can work in good health and with peace of mind will improve corporate business performance. Health management as presented by Ms. Shinsa will trigger the establishment of such favorable environments. We will expand this to many more companies, and thereby, promote health and improve corporate business performance simultaneously.
Materializing a society in which people enjoy long and healthy lives is a major pillar of the Growth Strategy of the Abe Cabinet. The Government will act in unity in working to steadily promote our healthcare and medical strategy, including the Asia Health and Wellbeing Initiative.”
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Ministerial Council on the Management of Administrative Documents and Related Matters
Cabinet Secretariat, Friday, July 20, 2018
[Provisional Translation]
On July 20, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held a meeting of the Ministerial Council on the Management of Administrative Documents and Related Matters at the Prime Minister’s Office.
Based on the discussion, the Prime Minister said,
“Today, we approved the measures to prevent the recurrence of the series of problems concerning government documents.
Public records are the most fundamental infrastructure for linking citizens with the Government. It is important above all that each and every government staff member always bears in mind this point and becomes more mindful of compliance in the management of them. We will instill this mindset into the culture of civil servants by making them thoroughly aware through face-to-face trainings and other programs targeting everyone from newly recruited staff to senior officials and incorporating this aspect into personnel evaluations.
To materialize effective management of public records and archives across the whole of government, we will appoint the Government Chief Record Officer (Government CRO) to the Cabinet Office and an inspector-general for public records management in each ministry (CRO for each ministry). With this, we will further clarify the line of responsibility related to public records and archives management and significantly strengthen audit functions and governance.
With regard to electronically approved documents, we will change the system so that revisions cannot be made retroactively. Furthermore, we will promote fundamental reforms in order to manage administrative documents in a more systematic and efficient manner based on the underlying concept of managing administrative documents electronically. To this end, we will formulate a basic policy by the end of this fiscal year regarding the establishment of mechanisms for electronically managing administrative documents from drafting to saving, disposing and transferring.
It is an extremely difficult task to regain the public’s confidence which has once been lost; nevertheless, we must achieve it. We will exert every effort to prevent any recurrences with a sense of urgency. I would like to ask all ministers to take the lead in implementing all of the matters approved today accordingly and take all possible measures to ensure the appropriate management of public records.”
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Communiqué,G20 Finance Ministers and Central bank Governors Meeting,Buenos Aires.
Ministry of Finance, Monday, July 23, 2018
Global economic growth remains robust and unemployment is at a decade low. However, growth has been less synchronised recently, and downside risks over the short and medium term have increased. These include rising financial vulnerabilities, heightened trade and geopolitical tensions, global imbalances, inequality and structurally weak growth, particularly in some advanced economies. We will continue to monitor risks, take action to mitigate them and respond if they materialise. Although many emerging market economies are now better prepared to adjust to changing external conditions, they still face challenges including market volatility and reversal of capital flows.
We will continue using all policy tools to support strong, sustainable, balanced and inclusive growth. Monetary policy will continue to support economic activity and ensure price stability, consistent with central banks’ mandates. Fiscal policy should be used flexibly and be growth-friendly, prioritise high quality investment, while enhancing economic and financial resilience and ensuring debt as a share of GDP is on a sustainable path. Continued implementation of structural reforms will enhance our growth potential. We reaffirm our exchange rate commitments made in March. We will clearly communicate our macroeconomic and structural policy action. International trade and investment are important engines of growth, productivity, innovation, job creation and development. We reaffirm our Leaders’ conclusions on trade at the Hamburg Summit and recognise the need to step up dialogue and actions to mitigate risks and enhance confidence. We are working to strengthen the contribution of trade to our economies.
As we embrace technological transformation, we will ensure its benefits are widely shared and address the challenges it creates for individuals, businesses, and governments. We endorse the Menu of Policy Options for the Future of Work (the Menu) which will help us to: harness technology to strengthen growth and productivity; support people during transitions and address distributional challenges; secure sustainable tax systems; and ensure that the best possible evidence informs our decision-making. The Menu also reinforces the importance of international cooperation and promoting gender equality. We will draw on the Menu to respond to the impacts of technological change, considering individual country circumstances.
To further boost infrastructure investment, and support growth and development, we welcome progress on the Roadmap to Infrastructure as an Asset Class. We endorse the G20 Principles for the Infrastructure Project Preparation Phase which will help deliver a pipeline of well-prepared and bankable projects that are attractive to private investors by improving assessments of project rationale, options appraisal, commercial viability, long-term affordability, and deliverability. We look forward to key progress being achieved under the Roadmap in the areas of risk mitigation and credit enhancements, data availability, and contractual and financial standardisation by the end of 2018. The Private Sector Advisory Group will continue informing the work on the key challenges in attracting private investment to infrastructure. We agree to extend the mandate of the Global Infrastructure Hub to 2022. We call for coordination among current initiatives sponsored by MDBs and others to avoid duplication of efforts.
Against the backdrop of recent volatility in financial markets and capital flows, we continue our work as agreed in March, including on monitoring cross-border capital flows and examining available tools to help countries harness their benefits while also managing risks.
We reaffirm our commitment to further strengthening the global financial safety net with a strong, quota-based, and adequately resourced IMF at its centre. We are committed to concluding the 15th General Review of Quotas and agreeing on a new quota formula as a basis for a realignment of quota shares to result in increased shares for dynamic economies in line with their relative positions in the world economy and hence likely in the share of emerging market and developing countries as a whole, while protecting the voice and representation of the poorest members by the Spring Meetings and no later than the Annual Meetings of 2019.
We continue to monitor debt vulnerabilities in Low Income Countries (LICs) with concern. Accurate and comprehensive debt data are essential in ensuring sound borrowing and lending practices. We welcome again the Operational Guidelines for Sustainable Financing and we agree that building capacity in public financial management, strengthening domestic policy frameworks, and enhancing information sharing would help avoid new episodes of debt distress in LICs. We support ongoing work by the IMF, WBG and Paris Club on LICs debt. We will work towards enhancing debt transparency and sustainability, and improving sustainable financing practices by debtors and creditors, both official and private.
We are looking forward to the report by the G20 Eminent Persons Group on Global Financial Governance.
The financial system must remain open, resilient and supportive of growth. We remain committed to the full, timely and consistent implementation and finalisation of the post-crisis reforms, and the evaluation of their effects. We welcome progress on the evaluations by the FSB and standard setting bodies (SSBs) of the effects of the reforms on infrastructure financing and incentives to centrally clear over-the-counter derivatives and we expect the final results by the Leaders’ Summit. We look forward to the FSB’s continued progress on achieving resilient market-based finance. We continue to monitor and, if necessary, address emerging risks and vulnerabilities in the financial system.
Technological innovations, including those underlying crypto-assets, can deliver significant benefits to the financial system and the broader economy. Crypto-assets do, however, raise issues with respect to consumer and investor protection, market integrity, tax evasion, money laundering and terrorist financing. Crypto-assets lack the key attributes of sovereign currencies. While crypto-assets do not at this point pose a global financial stability risk, we remain vigilant. We welcome updates provided by the FSB and the SSBs and look forward to their further work to monitor the potential risks of crypto-assets, and to assess multilateral responses as needed. We reiterate our March commitments related to the implementation of the FATF standards and we ask the FATF to clarify in October 2018 how its standards apply to crypto-assets.
We support a globally fair, sustainable, and modern international tax system. We reaffirm the importance of the worldwide implementation of the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting package. We remain committed to work together to seek a consensus-based solution to address the impacts of the digitalisation of the economy on the international tax system by 2020, with an update in 2019. We call on all jurisdictions to sign and ratify the multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters. Jurisdictions scheduled to commence automatic exchange of financial account information for tax purposes in 2018 should ensure that all necessary steps are taken to meet this timeline. We support the OECD’s strengthened criteria to identify jurisdictions that have not satisfactorily implemented the internationally agreed tax transparency standards. Defensive measures will be considered against listed jurisdictions. We support enhanced tax certainty and tax capacity building, including through the global Knowledge-Sharing Platform for Tax Administration under the umbrella of the Platform for Collaboration on Tax, and welcome the Latin America Academy for Tax Crime Investigation in Buenos Aires.
Mobilising sustainable finance and strengthening financial inclusion are important for global growth. We welcome the G20 Sustainable Finance Synthesis Report 2018 which presents voluntary options to support deployment of sustainable private capital. We endorse the G20 Financial Inclusion Policy Guide on Digitisation and Informality, which provides voluntary policy recommendations to facilitate digital financial services, taking into account country contexts. While significant progress has been made to lift financial inclusion through the Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion, we ask that it streamlines its work program and structure so it continues to support economic growth, financial stability and reducing inequality.
Our fight against terrorist financing, money laundering and proliferation financing continues. We call for full, effective and swift implementation of FATF standards. We call on FATF to further enhance its efforts to counter proliferation financing. We commit to further our individual and collective efforts to eliminate the financial networks supporting terrorist groups.
Annex
Issues for Further Action
We welcome the MDB Infrastructure Cooperation Platform, which will report to the Infrastructure Working Group, and ask that advice be provided to us by the 2018 Leaders’ Summit on its activities to improve MDB project preparation, standardisation of guarantees and credit enhancement tools, and data availability. We call on the IWG to study the feasibility of new mechanisms to create portfolios of infrastructure assets, including brownfield infrastructure projects, that can be purchased by institutional investors.
We ask the OECD to report by the 2018 Leaders’ Summit on the number of jurisdictions that are at risk of being considered as not having satisfactorily implemented internationally agreed tax transparency standards. We also ask the OECD to prepare a list by the 2019 Leaders' Summit of the jurisdictions that have not yet sufficiently progressed toward a satisfactory level of implementation. We ask the OECD and the IMF to report to Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors in 2019 on progress made on tax certainty.
We reiterate our call for the Platform for Collaboration on Tax to develop its workplan on its commitments by the IMF/WBG Annual Meetings this year and provide a progress report in 2019.
We look forward to the report by the FSB on policy development under its action plan to assess and address the decline in correspondent banking relationships by the 2018 Leaders’ Summit.To ensure the GPFI continues to make a positive contribution to financial inclusion, we ask that it considers where its work could be rationalised and prioritised. We also ask the GPFI to consider its current structure with a view to more closely aligning it with other working arrangements in the G20 finance track. This includes combining the work of the four GPFI sub groups into one working group, appointment of working group co-chairs and changing its membership arrangements. We expect the GPFI to provide a roadmap by the Leaders’ Summit in December on the path to achieving the requested changes in 2020.
We look forward to the implementation of the outcomes of the April Paris Conference on Counter Terrorist Financing.
Reports and Documents Received
Global Economy
G20 Surveillance Note, IMF
Future of Work
G20 Menu of Policy Options for the Future of Work, FWG
Future of Work: Measurement and Policy Challenges, IMF
Tax Policies for Inclusive Growth in a Changing World, OECD
Maintaining Competitive Conditions in the Era of Digitalisation, OECD
Financing Social Protection and Lifelong Learning for the Future of Work: Fiscal Aspects and Policy Options, ILO
Policy Options to Support Innovation in Developing Countries, WBG
Infrastructure
G20 Principles for the Infrastructure Project Preparation Phase, G20, IWG
G20/OECD/WB Stocktake of Tools and Instruments Related to Infrastructure as an Asset Class, Background Document, OECD and WBG
G20/OECD Effective Approaches for Implementing the G20/OECD High-Level Principles on SME Financing, OECD
Financial Regulation
Evaluation of the Effects of Reforms on Infrastructure Finance . Consultative Document, FSB
Evaluation of Incentives to Centrally Clear OTC Derivatives . Draft Executive Summary of Consultative Document, FSB
Cyber Lexicon Consultative Document, FSB
Crypto-Assets Report on Work by the FSB and Standard-Setting Bodies, FSB
International Financial Architecture
IMF Institutional View in Practice, IMF
The OECD Code of Liberalisation of Capital Movements: Update on Developments, OECD
Joint Note on Strengthening Public Debt Transparency . the Role of the IMF and the World Bank, IMF and WBG
Joint Note on Improving Public Debt Recording, Monitoring and Reporting Capacity in Low and Lower Middle-Income Countries, IMF and WBG
Joint Note Updating on the Implementation of the G20 Principles for Effective Coordination between the IMF and MDBs, IMF, WBG, IADB
International Taxation
Secretary-General Report to Finance Ministers, OECD, Buenos Aires, Argentina, July 2018
Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing
Report to Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, FATF, July 2018
Financial Inclusion
G20 Policy Guide. Digitisation and Informality: Harnessing Digital Financial Inclusion for Individuals and MSMEs in the Informal Economy, GPFI
G20 Digital Identity Onboarding, WBG
Achieving Development and Acceptance of an Open and Inclusive Digital Payments Infrastructure, BTCA
Use of Alternative Data to Enhance Credit Reporting to Enable Access to Digital Financial Services by Individuals and SMEs operating in the Informal Economy, ICCR
Data Protection and Privacy for Alternative Data, WBG
G20/OECD Policy Guidance - Financial Consumer Protection Approaches in the Digital Age, OECD
G20/OECD INFE Policy Guidance - Digitalisation and Financial Literacy, OECD
Sustainable Finance
G20 Sustainable Finance Synthesis Report - 2018, Sustainable Finance Study Group
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Establishment of the Seventh Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD7) Secretariat
Foreign Affairs, Friday, July 27, 2018
On Friday, 27 July, the TICAD7 Secretariat was established within the African Affairs Department, Middle Eastern and African Affairs Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Secretariat will carry out overall operations, including logistics, for TICAD7, which will be held in Yokohama from 28 to 30 August 2019 and for TICAD Ministerial Meeting, which will be held in Tokyo from 6 to 7 October 2018.
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Foreign Minister Kono Visits Malaysia and France
YouTube, Tuesday, July 24, 2018
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
The Enactment of the Law for the Mindanao Peace Process (Statement by Foreign Minister Taro Kono)
Foreign Affairs, Thursday, July 26, 2018
1. Japan heartily welcomes the enactment of the Organic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao regarding the Mindanao peace process in the Republic of the Philippines through the signature of H.E. Mr. Rodrigo Roa Duterte, President of the Republic of the Philippines, on July 26, 2018.
2. The enactment of this law is an important step toward the establishment of the new autonomous government (Bangsamoro) in Mindanao. Japan sincerely commends the efforts of the Government of the Philippines, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), and all others concerned.
3. Japan strongly hopes that the transition process toward the inauguration of Bangsamoro will be steadily implemented, including ratification of the organic law and establishment of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA).
4. Japan has been supporting the peace process for many years under the conviction that peace in Mindanao will contribute to regional peace and stability. As declared in the Japan-Philippines Joint Statement on Bilateral Cooperation for the Next Five Years announced in October 2017, Japan will enhance its support for the development of Mindanao in a wide range of fields, in accordance with progress in the peace process.
[Reference] The Mindanao Peace Process
(1) Through peace negotiations between the Government of the Philippines and the MILF, the Framework Agreement was signed in October 2012, and the Comprehensive Agreement was signed in March 2014.
(2) Based on the final peace agreement, the new autonomous government (Bangsamoro) will be established through the following transition process: (i) the enactment of the organic law; (ii) the ratification of the organic law; (iii) the establishment of the BTA; and (iv) the election of the Bangsamoro Assembly.
(3) The Government of Japan has been contributing to the advancement of the peace process and to the reconstruction and development of the Mindanao region through efforts that include: (i) the dispatch of development experts to the Social and Economic Development Section of the International Monitoring Team; (ii) the concentrated implementation of economic cooperation projects such as extending Grassroots Grant Assistance for Human Security in former conflict-affected areas (Japan-Bangsamoro Initiatives for Reconstruction and Development (J-BIRD)); and (iii) participation in the International Contact Group (ICG) that provides advice by attending peace talks as an observer.
(4) In addition, the Government of Japan expressed that, from a mid-to-long term perspective, it will match its support with the progress made in the process for the establishment of a new autonomous government in Bangsamoro by enhancing its assistance for development in Mindanao, which Japan has been implementing under J-BIRD in a wide range of areas, in the Japan-Philippines Joint Statement on Bilateral Cooperation for the Next Five Years announced on the occasion of the visit to Japan of President Duterte in October 2017.
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Emergency Assistance to the Lao People’s Democratic Republic in response to the Flood Disaster
Foreign Affairs, Wednesday, July 25, 2018
1. Today, July 25, the Government of Japan decided to provide emergency relief goods (tents, blankets, etc.) through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), in response to the request from the Government of the Lao PDR following serious damage caused by the flood disaster in Attapeu province in southern Laos.
2. Considering the friendly relationship between Japan and the Lao PDR, the Government of Japan decided to provide emergency assistance to the Lao PDR to respond to the humanitarian needs of the people affected by the disaster.
(Note)
On July 23, a break in the hydropower dam by the heavy rainfall led to flash floods and caused serious damages in Attapeu province in southern Laos. It is reported that many people died or have been missing.
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Signing of the Enhanced Bilateral Swap Arrangement between Japan and Thailand
Ministry of Finance, Monday, July 23, 2018
Signing of the Enhanced Bilateral Swap Arrangement between Japan and Thailand
The Bank of Japan, acting as agent for the Minister of Finance of Japan, and the Bank of Thailand signed the Amendment and Restatement Agreement of the fourth Bilateral Swap Arrangement (BSA) to take effect today. The BSA is a two-way arrangement, in which both authorities are able to swap their local currencies (i.e., the Japanese Yen and the Thai Baht, respectively) for the US Dollar. This amendment additionally enables Thailand to swap its local currency against the Japanese Yen. The size of the facility stands unchanged, that is, up to 3 billion US dollars or equivalent for both countries.
The authorities of both countries believe that the strengthened bilateral financial cooperation will contribute to the stability of financial markets, promote the use of local currencies, including the Japanese Yen, in Asia in the medium term, and thereby further develop the growing economic and trade ties between Japan and Thailand.
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
Entry into force of Customs Mutual Assistance Agreement (CMAA) between Japan and Mexico
Ministry of Finance, Friday, July 27, 2018
AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF JAPAN AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED MEXICAN STATES REGARDING MUTUAL ASSISTANCE AND COOPERATION IN CUSTOMS MATTERS will enter into force on 29th July.
あのイーハトーヴォのすきとおった風、夏でも底に冷たさをもつ青いそら、うつくしい森で飾られたモリーオ市、郊外のぎらぎらひかる草の波。またそのなかでいっしょになったたくさんのひとたち、ファゼーロとロザーロ、羊飼のミーロや、顔の赤いこどもたち、地主のテーモ、山猫博士のボーガント・デストゥパーゴなど、いまこの暗い巨きな石の建物のなかで考えていると、
