On 27 November, Shinichi Isa, Member of the House of Representatives of Japan and Former Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Finance for Japan, delivered his remarks at the Opening Ceremony of the Asia Youth Leaders Forum 2021.

Read the speech below.

Hello everyone,

I’m Shinichi Isa, a member of Japan's House of Representatives. I'd like to give my best wishes to the Asia Youth Leaders Forum 2021. 

The young leaders from Asian countries are engaged in various fields such as politics, economy, academia, and culture. I believe this forum is a great communication platform and a valuable opportunity for the young leaders to exchange ideas on many topics. I would like to express my sincere thanks to the organizer, China Public Diplomacy Association, and all the participants.

I have served as a member of the National Diet of Japan for ten years. One of my lifelong pursuits and what I keep promoting is the policy of technological innovation. It is also an important part of this forum. In fact, before I became a member of the Diet, I served at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan, and have been promoting the policy of technological innovation since then. Ten years ago, I worked at the Japanese Embassy in Beijing, committed to promoting technological cooperation between Japan and China. Ten years ago, I wrote a paper on how China's science and technology will develop. I went to the frontline of technological development, met Chinese researchers, and finally completed the paper based on what I saw and heard for myself. Later the paper was published. The key point of the paper was that China would definitely develop rapidly. Back then, few books in Japan held that view, so my paper was a bestseller for a while. Only ten years have passed now, and China's science and technology have developed by leaps and bounds, which proves the view I proposed ten years ago is correct. Today, I think it’s important to firmly promote technological cooperation between China and other Asian countries. 

On the other hand, regarding the future development of Japanese scientific research, I think the situation is not optimistic. Many of you may doubt my view since quite a few Japanese researchers have won the Nobel Prize in recent years. However, the prizewinners were awarded only because of the research achievements they made at younger ages. In other words, Japan’s scientific research capabilities were excellent 30 or 40 years ago, which resulted in the prize winning of quite a few Japanese researchers today. Because of that, I’m not optimistic about Japanese winning the Nobel Prize 30 years later. So, a very important debate is going on in Japan about whether to invest again in young researchers from the national level. The National Diet of Japan held discussions at the end of this year about the idea of establishing a fund of ten trillion yen and investing the profits of the fund in young researchers continuously. Such ideas are being constantly promoted at present. Besides, international exchange and joint research are very important. I also hope that Japan can have enough budget in the future to support talented people in Asia and even the world on the whole on joint research and exchange. I hope the Japanese government can implement this budget system to ensure talent exchange among Asian countries and care more about young researchers. The Diet is discussing this issue, too.

In the end, I want to remind you that my hometown Osaka has been selected to host Expo 2025. Although many people are still suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic, although every country is facing their own difficulties, and although international communication is being held back, by 2025, we'll surely overcome all these difficulties. When that time comes, I hope everyone will realize that it is because of this crisis that we are able to build a new society. I hope the young Asian leaders will come to Expo 2025. I also hope we can have another opportunity to discuss the future society that shines with the brilliance of life. I wish the Asia Youth Leaders Forum all the best! This is the end of my speech. Thank you for your time.