Japan, a country traditionally reluctant to immigration, increasingly needs foreign labor to tackle its demographic problems and is taking steps to increase the arrival of foreign workers, in a race threatened by competition from nations. neighbors.
Japan has seen the number of foreign workers increase steadily in recent years to reach unprecedented levels, a trend that is expected to continue in the future.
The Asian country, one of the oldest in the world, lacks native labor, especially for unskilled jobs, but also for those that require superior skills, a burden in the face of which experts consider that greater migratory openness is necessary.
The director of the Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE), a think tank for the country’s relations and the diversity of its society, Toshihiro Menju, told EFE that for Japan to attract the immigration it needs, it must “renew widely their way of recruiting and the stance of accepting immigrants.”
Strict conditions before necessary immigration
Japan surpassed the threshold of two million foreign employees for the first time in January and its next goal is to count 820,000 qualified workers in the next five years, more than double the previous quota established.
Menju considers the goal “ambitious” if Japan does not change “its current position,” since the country’s conditions for work visa applicants are still very strict.
However, he believes that the pace at which Japan’s immigration is growing marks a trend that would allow it to approach 10 million foreigners by 2040.
Added to the severe requirements imposed on immigrants are competition from countries in the Asia-Pacific region such as South Korea or Australia, which offer better working conditions, and the weakness of the yen, which recently hit its lowest levels since 1990. set of factors that prevent Japan from meeting its immigration objectives.
In fact, the national program for qualified foreign workers, launched in 2019, originally contemplated a maximum quota of 345,000 participants, but so far it has only managed to attract 200,000, according to official figures.
This program allows foreign labor to cover, among others, positions related to cleaning, construction, manufacturing, care or agriculture, sectors to which the Japanese Executive proposed in March adding road transport, railway , forestry and wood.
Record for Japan but far from the figures of other developed countries
In 2023, Japan reached the record number of foreigners living in the country with 3.4 million, which represents an increase of 10.9% compared to the previous year and around 2.7% of the total population.
.
Meanwhile, in other developed nations, the percentage of resident immigrants rises to considerably higher figures among the total inhabitants.
Among the member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the average foreign population is around 10%. In the case of Spain, the foreign population represents 13.15% according to data offered by the National Institute of Statistics (INE) in November 2023.
In Japan, the Vietnamese lead the group of foreign employees and, in turn, the group of workers considered ‘low-skilled’ or little qualified, while positions that demand superior skills are occupied mainly by Chinese and South Koreans.
According to Menju, from now on the presence of personnel from West and South Asia is expected to increase in the country.
Caution in immigration policies
In the opinion of the director of the Japan Center for International Exchange, the Japanese Executive takes measures on immigration policies, but these are not always openly communicated.
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has been increasing the quotas allowed for the entry of foreign workers for specific sectors, but the party’s public stance in relation to immigration is very conservative.
“The Government does not want to show that it is taking measures in immigration policy because it takes into account the conservative part of politicians and society,” clarified Menju, who believes that the country’s security and the curiosity aroused by manga and ‘ anime’ are Japan’s main attractions when it comes to attracting foreign talent.
BY: TTU
