International Labour Conference, 93rd Session
Visiting Minister's Speech of Japan
Toshikazu TOGARI,
Vice-Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Japan
International Labour Conference, 93rd Session,
June 7 2005
Thank you, Mr. Chairman ( Madame Chair ).
Once again it is my great honor to be given this opportunity to speak on behalf of the Japanese government this year in this beautiful world city of water and green, Geneva.
First of all, my country strongly supports the ILO in its strong conviction to pursue its basic goal of Decent Work and respects the efforts of the ILO, the employers, the workers, and each member state.
The recent trend of accelerated globalization has created new economic opportunities, but it is also true that in the shadow of this new phenomenon many people have been left behind. We share the awareness of the ILO that globalization should be fair and open to everybody and that its benefits and interests be available to all people. To this end, it is important to achieve the goal that everyone have access to decent work, and we support the ILO's role in this endeavor.
(Globalization and Youth)
One of the effects of globalization is that it attacks directly those who are in a vulnerable position. Youth, one of the agendas of this conference, are likely to be negatively affected by globalization. But at the same time, young people have a wealth of creativity and flexibility. They are an asset that has the great potential to contribute to the development of society through the accumulation of knowledge and experience. We are convinced that by tapping the young generation's potential, the social economy of each region will be vitalized and lay the foundation to create decent work.
(Youth employment symposium and multi/bi programs)
In December last year, Japan held the symposium `Asia Symposium on Globalization and the Future of Youth` together with the ILO, and we were honored to have the presence of Director General Somavia. From Asia to the rest of the world, we were able to send out the message that youth are our greatest asset. Based on the results of this event, Japan plans to begin a project in 2006 in cooperation with the ILO for youth employment.
(Efficient management of the Office organization)
Mr. Chairman,
Japan highly values and supports the objectives of the ILO and its activities that are being carried out in the world. However, in any organization it is necessary to continuously review the efficient use of its resources. Especially with regard to a budget that is an aggregate of the contributions of each member state, we need to manage it as efficiently as possible and avoid unnecessary increase, as many of the member states are faced with challenging fiscal situations. It is also indispensable that by thoroughly reducing the administrative costs we strive to enhance the budget for field activities.
To this end, we believe that personnel costs need to be reduced through restructuring, and the structure needs to be made more efficient. We feel that further decentralization and more flexible HR assignments are needed in order to implement effective field-based technical cooperation.
We look forward to the further efforts of the ILO Office.
( Conference )
Mr. Chairman,
In the DG's report the question is raised as to how to run this annual Conference itself. We welcome this, as it relates to a very important matter. The annual conference is the place where the social partners of government, employers and workers of the world gather together with their respective wisdom and experiences. This is where the future of labor is being designed. Therefore, we believe that a very important issue has been raised here: how we can run this conference more productively by modernizing and making it interactive.
We are particularly interested in the possibility of connecting to the rest of the world via the internet, and the DG's proposal of panel discussions.
(Reform of Public Workers System)
I have been talking about the reform of the ILO so far.
Concerning the civil service reform in Japan, the Japanese Government recognizes that it is important in the first place to have earnest negotiations and consultations within the country between the Government and the parties concerned. Meetings between the Government side and the labour side at various levels, including related ministers and the labour representatives, have been promoted.
The Japanese Government will continue to advance reforms under this framework.
I would like to invite the ILO to look patiently at the development of the dialogues between the Government side and the labour side.
(Conclusion)
In Japan we have a saying, " Eyes are cowardly, hands are courageous." Faced with poverty and all kinds of injustice, it may seem too idealistic and too far away to realize the society that the ILO seeks to achieve. At times we may be discouraged. But this saying reminds us that if we are willing to take one challenge at a time that we can handle, eventually we will be able to achieve a lofty goal before we even know it.
I would like to conclude my remarks by saying that Japan is committed to facing these difficult challenges, moving forward together with the ILO.
Thank you for your kind attention.
