Japan Panel Calls for Boost in Long-Term Public Works Investment

Tokyo, April 28 (Jiji Press)--Private-sector members of a key Japanese government panel have called for a review of an indicator used to assess the appropriateness of public works projects in order to encourage long-term infrastructure investment by local governments and other entities.

“We need to build a strong regional economy in order to make the Japanese archipelago strong and prosperous,” Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said at Monday’s meeting of the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy.

Takaichi instructed relevant cabinet ministers to strengthen crisis management investment to make the Japanese homeland more powerful.

Members of the panel, chaired by Takaichi, discussed reforms to secure necessary public investment to build a sustainable regional economy, at a time when aging social infrastructure such as roads and bridges is becoming a problem in Japan.

Private-sector members called for effective preventive maintenance and prioritized budget allocation.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]