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[Provisional Translation]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attended the awards ceremony for the Japan Service Grand Prize held in Tokyo.

In his address, the Prime Minister said,

“Today, I am extremely pleased that the first awards ceremony for the Japan Service Grand Prize is being held with such grandeur.

Abenomics has advanced over the past three and a half years and we are seeing the progression of a positive economic cycle. The key to spreading the effects of all of this to every corner of the country is the improvement of productivity in the service industry, which is responsible for 70% of Japan’s GDP and employment.

We will continue to create a society that correctly evaluates superior services and attaches proper value to them. This Japan Service Grand Prize was established to that end, as an opportunity to change the way people think about services.

This awards ceremony was originally scheduled to take place at the end of April. However, the earthquakes in Kumamoto occurred, and they greatly affected the Cruise Train Seven Stars in Kyushu, which was selected to receive the Prime Minister’s Award.
Faced with that crisis, the Seven Stars team showed its true worth.

Even directly after the disaster occurred, they continued to provide their services in a calm and collected manner that was as close to normal as possible.

Thanks to support from regional hotels, restaurants, and even residents, service was restarted just three weeks after the disaster. They were committed to doing anything they could for the Seven Stars. When I learned about this episode, I came to understand that Seven Stars represents hope for the recovery of tourism in Kyushu following the earthquakes.

This made me once again feel that selecting Seven Stars as the recipient of this Prime Minister’s Award was without a doubt the right thing to do.

I am especially happy today to be able to publically present this award to Seven Stars in Kyushu, which has overcome such a crisis.

Today, I visited Oita. Even places that received only minimal direct damage from the earthquakes have seen a sharp drop in visits by tourists. The tourist sites of Kyushu are together an important pillar for Japan as we aim to create a tourism-oriented country. The Government will offer thorough support to absolutely ensure that they are restored to their former glory.

There are no doubt many excellent services being offered across Japan. We will create a hospitality license designed to make service quality more visible and shall begin making use of it from this summer. Moreover, the service industry is now something that extends across national borders.

Thanks to International Cool TA-Q-BIN, which won the award from the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, people around Asia can enjoy delicious next-day deliveries of fresh fish, Japanese wagyu beef, fruit, and other products from Japan.

Let’s work to spread the hospitality of Japan even further around the world.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership will expand the size of a free and fair market that correctly evaluates the values of goods and services. I believe that it will be a great help to efforts to expand overseas by the service industry as well. The Government will fully mobilize various policies, and working together with everyone here, we will offer strong support for a productivity revolution in the service industry. 

I would like to close my remarks by expressing my hope for the further development of all of your businesses and for a bright future for the service industry as a whole. Congratulations on your awards today.”