Toward an Energetic and Creative Society

A New Year's Message from Shoichiro Toyoda
Chairman of Keidanren:
The Japan Federation of Economic Organizations

January 1, 1995


The Japanese economy has now entered a period of change more extensive than anything experienced since the end of World War II, 50 years ago. Concurrently, many nations within the international community have become increasingly competitive, while Japan is faced with a threat to the competitiveness of many business sectors due to the rapidly appreciating yen. Also, the trend towards the hollowing out of the manufacturing, finance, technology and information industries is becoming increasingly visible. If we continue to ignore this reality, Japanese society as a whole is at risk of losing its strength and vitality, and we could find it increasingly difficult to maintain our current standard of living while keeping employment levels relatively stable.

However, there is certainly no reason to regard this unfortunate economic situation with gloom and negativity. Since the end of the War, Japan has faced a number of difficult economic situations, such as those triggered by the two Oil Shocks. Each time, the knowledge that our nation faced a serious crisis served as a catalyst which helped us, as a people, rise to the occasion and overcome the obstacle. We must face our current difficulties with the same positive attitude -- if comprehensive reforms are realized to reduce government regulations on business, if corporate taxes are reduced, and if we strive to base our economic system on the principle of individual responsibility -- I am confident that we can recover from our current economic difficulties and ensure a prosperous future for Japan. However, an essential element in this economic recovery is the fostering of an entrepreneurial spirit within the business community which will guide our efforts in creating new businesses and industries -- a spirit that will provide us with the strength to rebuild an energetic and creative society.

Since becoming Chairman of Keidanren, I have taken a firm stance on the need for urgent reform in the areas of politics, government administration and the economy and I have worked intensively for deregulation. On the international front, I have sought to improve Japan's relationship with the private sector abroad. I firmly believe that in order for the international community to secure economic stability and continued development, international business people throughout the world must learn to regard each other with trust and understanding. To this end, I have sought to work cooperatively with the U.S. and other overseas business leaders and have initiated meetings with them.

During 1995 Keidanren will strongly advocate enactment of comprehensive structural reform in Japan and will work to insure an on-going dialogue with the international community. We will also initiate policy discussions with Diet members, government officials and with private sector individuals from labor, education, mass-media, etc. in order to cooperatively determine the form of the socio-economic structure that will best suit the needs of our society in the 21st century.

Our activities will focus primarily on the following five points:

  1. Establishment of a Solid Path Toward Economic Recovery:
  2. Keidanren will advocate that the government adopt appropriate and timely monetary and fiscal policies that will enable the economy to fully recover and maintain a path towards a stable level of growth. We will also strongly encourage the government to aggressively implement structural reform, to stem the appreciation of the yen and to correct trade imbalances with other nations. We will call for international coordination on macro-economic policies to address the need for stable exchange rates and will stress our belief that the yen should become an international currency.

  3. Implementation of Comprehensive Business Deregulation:
  4. While we believe that business and industry must aggressively seek solutions to their own problems, we also believe that the Government must assist them by abolishing all unnecessary business-related regulations. Keidanren will concurrently work to assure the general public that the economic progress achieved will significantly improve their daily lives. We will make every effort, working closely with influential individuals in our society, to convince the Government that comprehensive deregulation is essential. Keidanren will support every effort of the Administrative Reform Committee of the Government.

  5. Creation of a More Creative Japanese Workforce:
  6. To remain competitive, the 21st century business community will require a creative, self-motivated workforce with an international perspective. To explore the steps required to create such a workforce, Keidanren will establish an ad hoc committee consisting of business leaders, academics and leading industry experts. The results of this committee's discussions will provide a foundation for defining the innovative types of educational systems, the role of the business community in the knowledge society, etc. We will also work to insure that our proposals are implemented.

  7. Establishment of Private Sector International Dialogues:
  8. In order to establish more constructive relations with the international community, we will redouble our efforts to communicate with it and increase public relations activities abroad. In America, we will expand exchanges with the Business Roundtable as well as with grass-roots organizations and local business associations. We intend to send economic missions to ASEAN and European countries and undertake steps to ensure that the information and results obtained from our ASEAN missions be reflected in the upcoming APEC meetings in Osaka.

    We will continue to support the efforts of the World Trade Organization, in coordination with the European and North American business communities. And, we will continue to expand our cooperation with international organizations such as the World Bank, and the United Nations, as well as non-governmental organizations in their efforts for development assistance, refugees and environmental protection.

  9. Creation of an Energetic and Creative Society:
  10. Japan's economic future in the coming century is best guided by the initiative of the private sector, with a small but efficient central and local governments. In order to meet various challenges of providing welfare for our senior citizens, preserving environment, etc., our corporate world, individuals and local communities should strengthen volunteer activities and utilize their respective ingenuity.

    Such a participatory socio-economic environment is the prerequisite for long, hopeful, prosperous and fulfilled lives. In 1995, Keidanren will work hard to make this ideal a reality.


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