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【記者会見】How Strict Border Controls are Hurting Japan

2022/02/09

2022年2月9日(水) | 日本外国特派員協会 (FCCJ)

As the omicron variant swept across the world last November, Japan slammed its doors closed to new foreign arrivals again, dashing the hopes of tens of thousands of would-be students, and hurting the many businesses that rely on non-Japanese experts and executives.

Despite criticism from non-Japanese, the policy initially drew strong support from the electorate. Now that omicron is everywhere in Japan, even the government-friendly big business lobby Keidanren has called for a rethink. Japan's Nikkei newspaper has also attacked what it called a "national isolation" policy as likely to put investors off, even as a study by government-affiliated groups including the Japan International Cooperation Agency found the country needed to quadruple the number of foreign workers by 2040 to meet growth targets.

Hear the point of view of students, universities and foreign businesses – what do they and Japan stand to lose from the border controls, which are currently set to stay in place until the end of February?

登壇者

Christopher LaFleur, American Chamber of Commerce in Japan (ACCJ) Special Advisor
Michael Mroczek, Chairman of the European Business Council in Japan
Marcus Schuermann, Delegate of German Industry and Commerce in Japan
Matthew J. Wilson, Dean and President of Temple University, Japan Campus
Filippo Pedretti, M.A. student at University of Padua/Ca' Foscari University of Venice

記者会見の様子 (YouTube)

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