Prime Minister Unveils Plan to Revitalize Japan

Japan’s prime minister outlined economic proposals Thursday to revitalize recession-hit industries and improve living standards for the average Japanese.

Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi unveiled the twin plans Thursday after a meeting of a special economic strategy task force that drafted the recommendations.

The centerpiece of the package is a proposal for doubling the amount of housing, working and recreational space within five years.

The recommendations also aim to increase the number of new jobs by 500,000 in the next two years and improve industrial productivity.

The recommendations are to be implemented through government spending and as yet unspecified deregulatory efforts, the prime minister said.

“We have been looking for ideas to overcome the current, very severe economic conditions and create a brighter future,” Obuchi said in a statement.

The plans are a key part of the embattled Obuchi administration’s answer to mounting concerns over the outlook for the Japanese economy, which shows few signs of pulling out of a prolonged slump, and long-standing quality of life issues in crowded Japan.

The Cabinet today is expected to formally instruct government agencies and ministries to begin fleshing out the still sketchy details in their budgetary requests for the fiscal year beginning next April.

Many Japanese are increasingly unnerved by issues such as job security and wage stagnation. Unemployment has topped a record 4%.

The plans’ recommendations were made by Obuchi’s newly established Economic Strategy Council, a 10-member Japanese version of the United States’ Council of Economic Advisors.