Today I am writing about the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), one of the Japanese central government agencies which is responsible for local government.
The MIC has jurisdiction over various systems involved in the fundamental framework of the nation, including administrative organisations, the public servant system, local administration and finance, electoral systems, fire defense and disaster prevention, information technology and postal services.
The MIC was established in 2001 by the merger of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications and the Management and Coordination Agency.
Originally, the Ministry of Home Affairs, where I am originally from, was the main agency responsible for local government.
The MIC’s administrative functions are closely connected to people’s lives.
In today’s challenging domestic and international environment, it is striving to reform the socio-economic system in order to prepare the nation for the 21st century. For this purpose, it is committed to promoting administrative reforms, advancing decentralisation of powers from central government to local government, ensuring stable sources of local revenue and thus activating regional economies.