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[Provisional Translation]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attended the first meeting in FY2016 of the Forum for Consultations between the National and Regional Governments at the Prime Minister’s Office.

During the meeting, discussion took place on formulating the Basic Policies for Economic and Fiscal Management and Reform, and the dynamic engagement of all citizens, regional vitalization, and advancing decentralization reform.

The Prime Minister said in his opening address,

“First, I want to express my respect and gratitude for the strong support for the repair and reconstruction of the areas affected by the earthquakes in the Kumamoto region, mainly centering on the six regional organizations, including the immediate dispatch of over 1,400 people to these areas from across the country.

The Government will continue to exert every effort for the reconstruction of the lives and livelihoods of the people affected by the disaster, and for the repair and reconstruction of the affected regions, and I request the continued support and cooperation of the six regional organizations on this matter.

This is our first Forum for Consultations between the National and Regional Governments this fiscal year.

We have so far advanced steadily with both economic revitalization and fiscal soundness under Abenomics, and we are halfway to the exit from deflation. I want the national Government and the regions to come together to create a more robust positive cycle of growth and distribution by achieving the largest GDP in postwar history of 600 trillion yen, as well as realizing the desired birthrate of 1.8 children per woman and reducing the number of people who leave employment to provide nursing care to zero. We will settle on a roadmap that fixes its gaze on ten years into the future, execute it effectively, and create a society in which all citizens are dynamically engaged.

Concerning regional vitalization, almost all municipalities have established regional versions of the comprehensive strategy, and so we are now at the stage of beginning all-out project development.

We have also achieved numerous reforms related to decentralization reform, including the creation of regional versions of Hello Work. However, we are still not finished with our reforms.

The Government will continue to provide thorough support toward the strong advancement of regional vitalization and decentralization reform through ideas put forth by the regions.

Today again, I hope to receive frank opinions from the regions on these themes, and I want to create policies based on those opinions.”