The Foreign Ministry on Thursday unveiled a final reorganization report under which its consular department will be upgraded to a bureau.
The status of the Consular and Migration Affairs Department will be upgraded in order to bolster efforts to secure the safety of a growing number Japanese nationals living or traveling overseas.
"This is only the beginning of the reform drive," stated Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi in explaining the report.
The Treaties Bureau will be renamed the International Law Bureau, while new bodies such as a peace-building adjustment committee and a task force on global issues will be created, according to the report.
The changes are expected to take effect in fiscal 2004.