The State and Politics In Japan by Ian Neary

Author:Ian Neary
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781509535859
Publisher: Wiley
Published: 2019-04-22T00:00:00+00:00

Functions of local government

There is significant variation in the precise range of activities that local authorities undertake, with those of the prefecture being most extensive and those of the cities greater than the towns and villages. However, we can identify six general areas in which local government plays an important role:

Provision, supervision and maintenance of local infrastructure: roads and rivers, fire services, port facilities, drinking water provision and sewage disposal.

Welfare facilities for the elderly, the disabled and children. Provision of home helpers, day-care centres, communal facilities and high-quality child care.

Education and cultural services: not only the provision of compulsory education in schools, but also facilities for adult education, libraries, swimming pools, parks, museums and art galleries, and halls for public performances.

Public health and environment administration: supervision of public health standards (licensing bars, restaurants, etc.), collection and treatment of garbage, consumer protection.

Administration and promotion of local industry, forestry, agriculture and/or fishing: the promotion and sale of local produce in local towns, the prefectural capital or further afield, and the creation of plans for the development of local industry, which in cities might include the provision of science parks.

Citizen services: the supervision of the family register system, registration of residents, issuing certificates relating to national insurance and pension entitlement, and, as a result of these activities, producing statistics for central government. (For a full list see Kimura 2017: 29.)

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