Migration & Demographic Challenges
Demography and globalization are reshaping Asia. Japan has the most rapidly aging society of any major country, and the way it is adapting to this shift offers lessons for others around the world. Asia Pacific countries’ reactions to the growing movement of people are also driving important changes in the region. In response, JCIE undertakes various projects that promote the sharing of knowledge and experience to help countries tackle the challenges facing aging societies. We also examine how Japan can adopt a sound immigration policy that encourages a more welcoming, multicultural society.
CURRENT PROGRAMS
Related Activities
Winners of 2024 Healthy Aging Prize for Asian Innovation Announced
October 1, 2024 |
The winners of the 2024 Healthy Aging Prize for Asian Innovation have been announced!
WEBINAR | Disaster Preparedness and Response for Aging Populations
June 21, 2024 (Asia) | June 20, 2024 (USA) | Online
JCIE and the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) co-hosted a webinar on how national and local government and communities can better prepare and respond to disasters, particular…
WEBINAR | Public Symposium Towards a Safer Transnational Migration—Bringing Together Multiple Stakeholders' Perspectives
October 13, 2023 | Online (Zoom webinar)
JCIE will hold an online public symposium, ” Towards a Safer Transnational Migration: Bringing in Migrants’ Perspectives,” to enhance information access for foreign migrants and promote accountability…
ROUNDTABLE | A Discussion on the Kanagawa Healthcare New Frontier, Age-Friendly Communities,and Public-Private Engagement to Achieve the SDGs
July 18, 2023 | New York City
As part of our new US-Japan Program on Healthy and Resilient Aging, JCIE hosted a discussion between Kanagawa Governor Yuji Kuroiwa and a group of experts in the fields of global health, aging, and su…
2023 US-Japan Healthy and Resilient Aging Exchange
May 21–27, 2023 | Tokyo and Kanagawa Prefecture
JCIE brought community leaders from Columbus, Ohio—a leader in age-friendly community-building in the United States—to meet with counterparts in Tokyo and in various age-friendly cities in Kanagawa Pr…
JCIE Staff Conduct Site Visit to Aging-Related Organizations in South Korea
March 21–24, 2023 | Busan and Hadong, South Korea
Members of the aging program team from JCIE traveled to South Korea for a series of site visits and meetings in Busan and the rural province of Hadong, where the team learned how the rapid declining b…
2023 US Young Political Leaders 50th Anniversary Delegation to Japan
January 21–28, 2023 | Tokyo, Nagano
Celebrating 50 years of partnership between JCIE and the American Council of Young Political Leaders (ACYPL), a delegation of 5 US Young Political Leaders traveled to Japan to meet with a variety of p…
2022 Healthy Aging Prize for Asian Innovation Award Ceremony
November 8, 2022 | Tokyo and Online
The winners of the 2021 Healthy Aging Prize for Asian Innovation have been announced!
AHWIN Forum on Harnessing the Power of Technology for Healthy Aging in Asia
November 8, 2022 | Tokyo & Online
The 2022 AHWIN Forum focused on regional efforts to translate data and innovations into better policies, products, and programs for healthy aging and care for older persons, and discussed best practic…
Winners of 2022 Healthy Aging Prize for Asian Innovation Announced
September 29, 2022 | Online
The winners of the 2021 Healthy Aging Prize for Asian Innovation have been announced!
SYMPOSIUM | New Strategies for Japan to Become a Country of Choice
February 14, 2022 | Online
As part of JCIE’s Roundtable on Japan’s Migration Policy Program JCIE is hosting a public symposium to discuss what is needed to make Japan a “country of choice” for foreigners seeking employment.
4th Networking Conference for the Supporting Youths of Diverse Roots and an Inclusive Society (SYDRIS) Initiative
September 8, 2021 | Online
JCIE held the 4th Networking Conference, as part of the SYDRIS Initiative, to explore what kind of collaboration should be established with government and civil society organizations (CSOs) in order t…
Why Oral Health Matters for an Aging Asia—Addressing Oral Health in the Context of Healthy Longevity
September 7, 2021 | Online
JCIE and the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) co-hosted a webinar on the importance of oral health when it comes to healthy longevity.
3rd Lunch Webinar for Supporting Youths of Diverse Roots and an Inclusive Society (SYDRIS) Initiative
September 2, 2021 | Online
JCIE co-hosted a third SYDRIS-100 SEED Lunch Webinar on multicultural coexistence to discuss current situation and challenges faced by teenagers in Japan with diverse roots.
1st General Meeting for the Humanitarian Aid to Marginalized Immigrants (HAMIS) Project
August 3, 2021 | Online
The first General Meeting of the Humanitarian Aid for Marginalized Immigrants (HAMIS) took place, a project launched by JCIE in partnership with the Japan Platform (JPF) to provide grants utilizing fu…
RELATED PUBLICATIONS & MEDIA COVERAGE
Mainichi OpEd Quotes JCIE’s Menju, Says Japan Is Now an Immigrant Nation
May 7, 2024
“This rigid focus on accepting foreigners as a mere labor resource adjusting valve risks compromising human rights. Moreover, half-hearted integration policies and Japanese language education may exac…
AHWIN Papers No. 4: Disaster Preparedness for Aging Populations—Lessons from Japan
Dr. Hiroko Okuda and Dr. Jun Tomio
February 2024
The fourth publication in the “AHWIN Papers” series examines Japan’s actions to improve disaster preparedness to better safeguard the country’s aging population.
Japan Elderly Care Services Drawing Interest from Thailand, Other Asian Nations
Etsuo Kono
February 8, 2024
“In early November, three older people with dementia were cleaning a park in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture. A group of nine visitors from Thailand, Vietnam, China and Singapore observed the way the th…
Japan as an “Immigrant Nation”: The Need for Frankness on Recent Policy Changes
Toshihiro Menju
September 21, 2023
“At a recent event…, Prime Minister Kishida Fumio told attendees that, ‘we must imagine a society in which we can live together with foreigners’ in light of Japan’s demographic decline. The prime mini…
Over 23,000 Complaints Received from Foreign Technical Trainees in Japan
December 12, 2022
“An organization that supports foreign technical trainees in Japan says it received more than 23,000 complaints in fiscal 2021. This comes amid reports about various problems, such as trainees not bei…
Press Briefing on Population Decline and Immigration Policy—Making Japan a Popular Destination for Immigration
January 23, 2023
Toshihiro Menju speaks at the Foreign Press Center of Japan on the policy measures Japan should adopt to attract and support foreign residents as a way to address population aging.
AHWIN Papers No. 3: The Path to Community-Based Integrated Care
Tomoko Sakota
April 2022
The third publication in the “AHWIN Papers” series covers Japan’s transition to community-based integrated care to address the challenges of its older population.
Japan Looks to Accept More Foreigners in Key Policy Shift
Reporting by Ami Miyazaki and Kantaro Komiya, Writing by Chang-Ran Kim
November 18, 2021
Toshihiro Menju, managing director of JCIE/Japan, comments on Japan’s need to welcome foreign workers as it grapples with demographic change in this Reuter’s article.
Leveraging Technology for the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing: Experiences of China, Japan and the Republic of Korea
United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)
May 2021
This report is on the utilization of technology and effective policy interventions to support older persons in China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea. It was published by the United Nations Economic…
AHWIN Papers No. 2: The Impact and Future of Japan’s 8020 Campaign
Dr. Midori Tsuneishi and Dr. Tamotsu Sato
April 2021
The second publication in the “AHWIN Papers” series covers Japan’s nationwide campaign to help people retain more teeth into their later years, the success of which offers an important model for promo…
AHWIN Papers | Responding to the Needs of Older Persons During a Pandemic
Prepared by Kim Gould Ashizawa and Stephen McHugh
June 2020
The inaugural AHWIN Paper draws on an online panel discussion that explored what policy lessons can be learned from the experiences of the United States, Japan, and Malaysia during the COVID-19 pandem…
Japan May Allow Immigration of Hong Kong Financial Sector, Specialized Workers
Palash Gosh
June 12, 2020
Article on Japan potentially allowing immigration of Hong Kong financial sector workers. Features quotes from Toshihiro Menju, Managing Director and Chief Program Officer at JCIE
Opening the Door to Incoming Workers
Yuko Aizawa
Feb 27, 2019
An analysis of the rise in non-Japanese residents and workers in Japan, including a breakdown of how various nationalities are represented and what sectors they tend to join in the workforce.
Japan’s Historic Immigration Reform: A Work in Progress
Toshihiro Menju
Feb 6, 2019
Toshihiro Menju analyzes the recent, controversial new reforms and their implications for Japanese immigration policy and the future of Japanese society.
Japan Eases Immigration Restrictions to Fill Chronic Care Worker Shortage
Sally Herships
October 18, 2018
In the past, Japan allowed mostly highly skilled professionals in the country. Now, due to severe labor shortages, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has ordered the government to look into new policies that w…