“The Japanese government continues to avoid adopting an immigration policy unpopular with the public, but its policies to revitalize local economies and promote more active roles for women have had little effect in halting the population decline. At the same time, the population decline and labor shortages prompted the highest annual increase ever in the number of resident foreigners in 2016, and foreign nationals are rapidly settling down in irregular patterns. While the groundwork for receiving migrants has already been laid to a degree at the grassroots level, the government should undertake to develop a comprehensive immigration policy.”

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