Decline and Fall of Japanese Bureaucrats

In Japan, bureaucrats have been the Best and the Brightest for a hundred years. In my school days, the first-rate students went to the government and the second-rate went to graduate schools. It's because Japan had to catch up the western advanced countries with the great wealth and strong army (Fukoku Kyohei) led by bright elites.

But these days, bureaucrats are favorable targets of bashing by media. Last week the Civil Service Reform Act (CSRA) passed the Diet, which abolishes amakudari that enables old bureaucrats to "descend" to the executives of related business.

This week Japan's government acknowledged that hundreds of bureaucrats routinely accept free beer, snacks and even cash from taxi drivers competing for late-night business. These "bribes" are not so serious, but the problem is the miserable situation of young bureaucrats.

Bureaucrats usually overwork more than 200 hours per month, most of which they spend waiting for the question from opposition parties. Since the Ministers know little about policy, the answers (sometimes even questions) should be prepared word by word by bureaucrats. And the answer documents must be agreed by all the related ministries. So most part of their work is spent for negotiating with other ministries and divisions. That's why they sit up all nights.

Naturally young bureaucrats are weary of such long-time unproductive works. Once amakudari was an incentive with which they recoup the "gift" they devoted in younger days. Now the gift would not be rewarded, so a lot of bureaucrats are exiting to the foreign investment banks and consulting firms. The CSRA would accelerate the "stampede".

It's a good news. Bureaucrats are not so important business that the brightest people devote their life any more. On the othe hand, foreign companies face great difficulties in entering Japanese market because of complicated and opaque regulations. As a result, foreign direct investment into Japan accounts only 3 per cent of GDP, the lowest of OECD countries. So foreigners want the people who knows the regulation.

Now Japan is facing the "third opening of the country" next to that of Meiji era and that after WW2. Young bureaucrats can be the pilots for opening the brave new world for Japan.