Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held a Meeting for an Exchange of Views with the Business Community at the Prime Minister's Office.

At the meeting, business community initiatives and challenges related to the facilitation of women’s active role were discussed.

The Prime Minister said in his opening address,

“Revision of the Growth Strategy is reaching the final stages, and initiatives designed to further facilitate the active role of women, who hold the greatest potential in Japanese society, continue to constitute a central facet of the strategy.

Last April, I made a request that all publicly listed companies in Japan have at least one female member on their board of directors. As a result, I understand that companies are steadily moving forward with the promotion of women to their management teams. I would like to express my gratitude to the three organizations attending today, for your efforts to promote proactive initiatives.

With regard to civil servants as well, we have promoted efforts to recruit more women. Furthermore, based on the Basic Policies on Employment, Promotion, and Other Relevant Matters approved by the Cabinet today, a vice-ministerial level committee will be newly established and will work to further reinforce such initiatives.

I would like to request your cooperation with the following three points in particular, so that we can further accelerate and sustain these movements, and ensure that 30 percent of leadership positions will be filled by women by 2020.

First of all, I would like all companies to proactively set targets for promoting the careers of women in accordance with their circumstances, and formulate a voluntary action plan aimed at achieving the targets they have set.
　
Secondly, I would like to ask companies to proactively disclose information about their recruitment of women, including listing the proportion of directors who are women in their financial reports.

Thirdly, while the Government will of course be setting an example with its own efforts, I would like to also create a highly effective legal framework aimed at promoting the recruitment of women in national and local government organizations and companies. I intend to engage in such efforts with a sense of urgency, and would like to request the cooperation of the business community to this end.

In addition, the Government will devote substantial effort to expanding support for small- and medium-sized companies that make proactive efforts to promote initiatives aimed at eliminating childcare waiting lists and the so-called ‘first-grade barrier,’ among others.

We will pay close attention to the opinions of the business community as we make proactive efforts to facilitate women’s active role, and I would like to ask for your continued cooperation.”