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On April 12, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held the 15th meeting of the Council on Investments for the Future at the Prime Minister’s Office.

At the meeting, there was discussion on the utilization of technologies related to Society 5.0 in the regions as well as its global promotion.

Based on the discussion, the Prime Minister said,
“Advancement of the fourth industrial revolution holds great potential for the resolution of various social issues, including the declining birthrate and ageing society, personnel shortages, and disasters. We must not fail to keep up with this revolutionary movement.

Meanwhile, with rapid advancements in technological innovation, various institutions and social systems are not catching up with changes. Overcoming the “governance gap” was a major topic of discussion at this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos, and Japan is playing a leading role in the world to tackle this issue.

As Society 5.0, where new ideas are boldly tackled, is becoming a reality, there is no other time in history that has so strongly demanded a frontier spirit in the government than today.

The initiative for open innovation in the maintenance and management of rivers has precisely responded to the needs of this new era.

In addition, on-site implementation of technologies from the fourth industrial revolution, which offer much greater precision than ever before, was realized in just around one year.

With the ageing of infrastructure becoming a major issue, I would like the relevant ministers, including the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, to further accelerate on-site installment of new innovations by rolling out these success stories in all fields of infrastructure, including roads, airports, ports, and sewerage, and advancing the formulation and visualization of work schedules and KPIs toward implementation.

I would like to thank Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum (WEF), and Mr. Murat Sönmez, Head of Center for the 4th Industrial Revolution & Global Network of the WEF , for joining us today.

I am convinced that the initiatives of Japan, a developed country facing challenges, will greatly contribute to the resolution of universal issues worldwide and the achievement of the SDGs.

I ask that relevant ministers swiftly crystallize Japan-based flagship projects towards the global promotion of Society 5.0 and promote collaboration with the projects of the Center for the 4th Industrial Revolution of the WEF.”