[Provisional Translation]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attended a ceremony of raising a signboard for the Secretariat for Promoting the Dynamic Engagement of All Citizens, and also delivered an address to the staff.

The Prime Minister said in his address,

“Three years ago, the Abe administration was inaugurated and we have dynamically pushed forward with the ‘three arrows’ as a means to exit deflation and reenergize the economy. As a result, we have regained the confidence that Japan can once again grow strongly and create an economy without deflation.

Abenomics will now enter its second stage. We must fully capitalize on the results and achievements thus far and take steps to enhance the economy even further.

We have established the ambitious goal of creating a society in which all one hundred million-plus citizens are each dynamically engaged. We will not be able to envision a future where Japan can shine if we cannot recognize and overcome our current reality of an aging society and declining birthrate. 

We must create a society where everyone has a chance, whether it be youth, the elderly, men or women, people facing challenges, or people with an illness or disability. We must change Japan into a place where everyone can take one step forward.

It is with this hope that today we inaugurate the Secretariat for Promoting the Dynamic Engagement of All Citizens. As staff, you must be aware of your mission to create such a future and I ask that you give your best efforts as Team Japan toward such a future, under the leadership of Minister Kato while also eliminating vertical segmentation between the ministries.  

Each of the goals of reaching a nominal GDP of 600 trillion yen, achieving a birthrate of 1.8 children per woman, which is the level the public has indicated as desirable, and reducing the number of people who leave employment to provide nursing care to zero, are very challenging. Nevertheless, these are the goals we have chosen, and by setting goals we will be able to create new ideas and produce new measures. I would like all of you to commit your knowledge and hard work to our efforts.

In closing, I would like to reemphasize my high expectations for all of you.”