Chairman Kobayashi’s Comments on Lifting of COVID-19 State of Emergency

March 19, 2021

The announcement by the Suga administration to lift the state of emergency on Monday is a testament to the joint efforts by the central government, local authorities, business community and citizens to curb the spread of COVID-19. Healthcare professionals and other frontline workers must also be commended for working so hard to alleviate the burden on Japan’s stressed healthcare system.

Unfortunately, new-variant infections have been on the rise throughout the country, so it is still too early to assume that we have the situation under control. COVID-19 concerns everyone, so we must all be aware that the lifting of the state of emergency does not mean that we are nearing the end of the pandemic. We must continue to remain on our guards and do all that we can to prevent the virus from spreading any further.

On behalf of the JFTC, I call on the government of Japan to continue its screening and other efforts to shore up our nation’s healthcare system, take the necessary steps to ensure that Japan has a stable supply of vaccines, and provide the public with timely and accurate information on vaccine safety and delivery schedules. Furthermore, I remain optimistic that our leaders will provide the right support to those who have suffered secondary impacts from the two state-of-emergency impositions that have been made thus far. Effective measures must be taken to rejuvenate our nation’s economic and social activity.

In addition to maintaining its support for measures taken by our central and local governments, the JFTC shall take whatever steps are necessary to sustain and encourage business activity, including efforts to promote continued telecommuting and digitalization.