Tag - local-government

 
Menu
Search
 
August 15, 2024
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Internal affairs minister Takeaki Matsumoto bows after a bill to revise the local autonomy law was approved at a plenary meeting of the Upper House on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 19, 2024
Japan enacts bill for emergency state power over local governments
The purpose is to make sure that Japan can respond quickly to incidents not presupposed by existing laws.
The Henoko coastal district in the city of Nago, Okinawa Prefecture
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 17, 2024
Okinawa governor's camp fails to secure majority in assembly poll
The tough election result is seen forcing the Okinawa governor to face difficulties managing the prefectural administration.
A growing number of local governments in Japan are selling reusable oversize waste collected from households on marketplace app Mercari.
JAPAN
Jun 16, 2024
Japan local governments using Mercari app to recycle oversize waste
From clothing boxes to furniture, the initiative aims to raise awareness of reusing goods while reducing carbon emissions from incineration.
A "free school" in Tokyo's Kita Ward. In April, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government began providing subsidies to students attending free schools.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 14, 2024
Local subsidies for Japan's 'free schools' highlight regional inequality
Support groups are calling for uniform financial assistance nationwide for institutions aimed at those who have left mainstream schooling.
The Niigata Prefectural Government holds a seminar in January 2021 for parents of students seeking jobs.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 14, 2024
Japan in urgent need of personnel for local public service
A shortage of civil servants to support the lives of local residents is raising serious concerns.
A government report says the excess concentration of population in Tokyo has not changed over the past decade.
JAPAN
Jun 11, 2024
Overconcentration in Tokyo unchanged over decade, government says
The government reported that the excess concentration of population in Tokyo has not changed over the past decade.
Local governments are stepping up support for single elderly people, to tackle the issue of unclaimed bodies.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 10, 2024
Japan's municipalities take action to tackle issue of unclaimed bodies
A spate of incidents involving unclaimed bodies has led to the formulation of measures to provide end-of-life support to single elderly people.
With a number of elderly people living alone increasing in Japan, the welfare ministry plans to conduct a survey of municipalities' responses to unclaimed bodies and remains.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 9, 2024
Japan to conduct first survey on unclaimed bodies
The number of unclaimed remains stored by municipalities stood at some 60,000 as of October 2021, according to an internal affairs ministry survey released in 2023.
Shizuoka Gov. Yasutomo Suzuki (left) meets with JR Central President Shunsuke Niwa in the city of Shizuoka on June 5.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 7, 2024
Kishida maintains 2037 target for Tokyo-Osaka maglev line
Prime minister pledges support of the central government in helping stakeholders meet the deadline.
A large sign against Halloween gatherings is displayed outside Shibuya Station in Tokyo on Oct. 28 last year.
JAPAN
Jun 6, 2024
Shibuya and Shinjuku crack down on street drinking
Both areas in Tokyo have been grappling with issues related to drinking in public following the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a bureaucratic blunder, a foreign resident was assigned the identity of a completely different person — who had the same name, same nationality and even the same birthday.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 4, 2024
It wasn't me: Similar strangers given same ID in Japan
The two individuals had the same name, same nationality and even the same birthday.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's government is implementing a tax cut of ¥40,000 per person from June to ensure income growth that outpaces inflation.
BUSINESS
May 31, 2024
Kishida government's much-touted tax cut to start in June
The prime minister has stressed that the tax cut is designed to ensure income growth that outpaces inflation.
A bill to revise the local autonomy law clears the Lower House on Thursday.
JAPAN
May 30, 2024
Japan's Lower House passes bill for state power in emergencies
The revision is aimed at enabling swift responses for ensuring citizens' safety.
Shizuoka Prefecture will launch an online registration system for Mount Fuji climbers on June 10.
JAPAN
May 30, 2024
Shizuoka to launch registration system for Mount Fuji climbers in June
The use of the registration system will not be mandatory, but registration will require the viewing of a video on climbing rules and etiquette.
The office of former Lower House lawmaker Mito Kakizawa in Tokyo's Koto Ward
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 28, 2024
Ex-lawmaker's former secretary fined for election law violation
Shu Goto, a former secretary of former Lower House lawmaker Mito Kakizawa, was fined over cash offers made to Koto Ward assembly members during a mayoral election last year.
People gather to promote the same-sex marriage in Nagoya in May last year.
JAPAN / Society
May 28, 2024
Japanese city recognizes same-sex couple in rare step
Japan is the only Group of Seven nation that does not recognize same-sex unions, and local media said the move was unprecedented.
Yasutomo Suzuki (second from right) celebrates in the city of Shizuoka on Sunday after being elected governor of Shizuoka Prefecture.
JAPAN / Politics
May 27, 2024
Opposition-backed Yasutomo Suzuki wins Shizuoka gubernatorial vote
Suzuki’s victory could pave the way for restarting the maglev train line project that had been delayed due to opposition from his predecessor.
Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike attends a news conference at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan in Tokyo in November 2020.
JAPAN / Politics
May 25, 2024
Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike plans to seek third term
Koike, who was reelected in 2020 as an independent, could make an announcement as early as Wednesday, sources close to the matter said.
Makoto Nishimoto, who goes by the name "Super Crazy-kun," at a news conference in the city of Miyazaki in November 2022
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 24, 2024
Ex-Miyazaki city assembly member gets 4½ years over sexual assault
Makoto Nishimoto, who goes by the name "Super Crazy-kun," was sentenced for sexually assaulting a female acquaintance in September 2023.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida attends a gathering of a Liberal Democratic Party faction led by LDP Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi (left) in Tokyo in 2022.
JAPAN / Politics
May 23, 2024
LDP loss in Shizuoka election could increase pressure for snap poll
Shizuoka's gubernatorial election is a close race between candidates backed by the ruling party and the main opposition.
Japan to revise consumption tax exemption for overseas tourists
Tourists walk through Nakamise shopping street near Sensoji Temple in Tokyo in April
Japan's tourism industry hit by cancellations after megaquake alert
A beach closed due to a megaquake alert in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, from Friday to Thursday.
Focus shifts to incoming typhoon as Tropical Storm Maria dissipates
Newly formed Tropical Storm Ampil, which is forecast to approach eastern Japan this weekend, is seen on the left side of this satellite image.
Kishida to step down in September in bid to show ‘LDP has changed’
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a news conference Wednesday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
Publisher finds surprise audience after translating history textbooks
Yamakawa Shuppansha president Takeshi Nozawa holds the publisher's textbook on Japanese history — used in high schools across Japan — alongside the new English version in Tokyo on May 23.
Economic security is about strengthening and sustaining growth, former minister says
Former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi says changes in the international balance of power, along with deepening economic interdependence, have led some countries to attempt to use their economic power to impose their will on others.
Ice bandanas, convenience store breaks: Running under Japan’s summer sun
Blistering heat is becoming a fixture of summer in Japan, but a few tweaks to your routine can make your outdoor runs bearable — if not enjoyable — until cooler temperatures return.
Japan issued its first-ever megaquake alert. What does that mean?
Naoshi Hirata (center), chairman of a committee tasked with evaluating the risk of a Nankai Trough earthquake, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
France brings down the curtain on its Olympic party with Tom Cruise and Leon Marchand
Fireworks are set off during the closing ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics at Stade de France in Saint-Denis on Sunday.
Japan fuels U.S. LNG boom even as climate targets and impacts loom
Flaring at the Cameron LNG export terminal in Hackberry, Louisiana. Flaring, a common sight at LNG plants, is a controlled burning of gas for reasons ranging from depressurizing equipment to disposing of gas that can’t be used. The practice is a "waste of money" and negatively impacts climate change and human health, says the International Energy Agency.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Sociologist Gracia Liu-Farrer argues that even though immigration doesn't figure into Japan's autobiography, it is more of a self-perception than a reality.
In search of the ‘Japanese dream’
By Thu-Huong Ha

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

mission sustainability vol.8: Omron Corp.Omron helping firms achieve carbon neutrality
mission sustainability vol.8: Omron Corp.Omron helping firms achieve carbon neutrality

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER