EXCLUSIVE: 45 Local Bodies Vie for Disaster Management Agency’s Regional Bases

Tokyo, July 26 (Jiji Press)–A total of 45 local governments and regional groups across Japan had offered to host regional offices of the country’s disaster management agency, expected to be launched in November, as of Friday, Jiji Press has learned. Among them, 23 are prefectural governments, including those making joint bids with municipalities, accounting for about half of the nation’s prefectures, according to officials of the Cabinet Secretariat. Many of the applicants are located in regions that were severely damaged in past major earthquakes. At the same time, some local governments said they hope hosting the agency’s regional offices would help correct the overconcentration of functions in Tokyo and revitalize regional economies. Twenty-one prefectures made requests independently. The central prefecture of Aichi submitted a joint bid with its capital city of Nagoya and the western prefecture of Osaka did so with the city of Osaka. Among the country’s ordinance-designated cities, seven, including Nagoya and Osaka, sought the establishment of such bases. In addition, 10 other cities, six regional blocs and the Union of Kansai Governments also filed their requests. In regions in northeastern Japan heavily affected by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami, the prefectures of Iwate and Miyagi, the city of Sendai in Miyagi and the city of Iwaki in Fukushima Prefecture sought to host the regional bases. The central prefectures of Ishikawa and Toyama, both hit hard by the January 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake, as well as the western prefecture of Hyogo, which suffered extensive damage in the January 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, also submitted their applications. “The establishment of regional disaster management bases helps keep awareness high and reminds people of past disasters,” Iwate Governor Takuya Tasso said, noting that more than 15 years have passed since the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. Ishikawa Governor Yukiyoshi Yamano highlighted the prefecture’s experience from the Noto Peninsula Earthquake and subsequent torrential rains, saying, “We have accumulated knowledge and expertise that can be shared with many other local governments.” Ryuta Ibaragi, governor of the western prefecture of Okayama, noted that Okayama has experienced relatively few major disasters. “There is little point in establishing the agency’s regional bases unless at least one of them is located in western Japan,” he added. “Relocating some functions of the capital outside Tokyo would be preferable in order to correct the overconcentration in Tokyo,” an Okayama prefectural government official said. Meanwhile, others pointed to the potential economic benefits of hosting a regional office. An Iwaki city official said, “Attracting a local office of the central government agency could help revitalize the local economy.” A bill to establish a disaster management agency was passed into law on July 13. The law stipulates that regional disaster management bureaus are to be set up within two years of its promulgation. The central government plans to establish two such offices in fiscal 2027 or later. In addition to the agency’s headquarters in Tokyo, the central government hopes to locate one office in an area vulnerable to a major earthquake along the Japan Trench or Kuril Trench and another in a region expected to be affected by a Nankai Trough megaquake. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]