Immigration Law Has Passed in Japan. What’s Next? (G1 Global 2019)

G1 Global Conference @GLOBIS Tokyo, Sept. 16, 2019.
Japan has passed laws to open up immigration as part of its strategy to balance demographics and deal with a labor shortage. While net immigration to Japan has increased for six consecutive years, the 2.22 million foreign residents still represent a mere 1.76% of the population. Japan is said to be one of the most homogeneous and high-context cultures in the world. How can Japan successfully integrate immigrants into its society? What are the key issues and problems surrounding large scale immigration? Will the new laws help Japan create a diverse society, even a new definition of what it means to be Japanese? This panel will seek to cover key issues surrounding immigration and suggest what should happen next.

Misa Matsuzaki (CEO, WORK JAPAN Co., Ltd)
Toshihiro Menju (Managing Director, Japan Center for International Exchange)
Jonathan Soble (Visiting Fellow, Asia Pacific Initiative)
Taku Tamura (Chief Director, EDAS)
Moderator: Ross Rowbury (President, Edelman Japan KK)