Japan PM highlights challenges, great change in New Year speech

TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Monday said Japan faces multiple challenges as it is "heading into an era of great change" in 2024.

"Japan faces a multitude of significant challenges, including our responses to a society in which the population is shrinking and constitutional reform," Kishida said in his New Year speech, Xinhua news agency reported.

In response to the political kickback scandal of fractions within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, Kishida said he is "determined to stand at the fore, making every possible effort to restore public trust."

"Political stability is essential in promoting policies," he said.

In the socioeconomic arena, Kishida vowed to achieve wage increases that surpass price hikes, as he looked forward to a year when Japan "breaks completely free of the deflationary mindset and orientation towards shrinking through cost-cutting that has enveloped the Japanese economy."

The prime minister vowed to propel development and transform change into strength for an era in which "all the people are able to believe that tomorrow will be even better than today."

Kishida also noted that 2024, in terms of global affairs, might be a year of tension that will also witness several important events, citing the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the Gaza conflict, and the upcoming U.S. presidential election.