Left unchecked, Japan's aging population and decreasing birthrate will reduce domestic economic productivity and, ultimately, affect the quality of life of all those who inhabit these islands.
It seems that, reluctantly, the government recognizes that a large part of any solution to this problem will involve bringing in a substantial number of foreign workers.
Unfortunately, and counterproductive to tackling the Japanese demographic reality, internationalization of the workforce is often linked to the notion of the erosion of national identity, a well-polished political foil tied emotionally to the fanciful idea of Japanese racial and genetic homogeneity.
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