Half of 20 major Japanese cities face shrinking population
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An estimate for 2050 shows that the number of those cities that will see a population decline will expand to 18, despite their earlier success in having attracted young people from nearby areas.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Half of 20 large Japanese cities, each with at least over 700,000 residents, have experienced a population decline compared with 10 years ago, partly due to a falling birth rate, analysis by Kyodo News showed on Feb 1.
An estimate for 2050 shows that the number of those cities that will see a population decline will expand to 18, despite their earlier success in having attracted young people from nearby areas.
Kitakyushu, located in the south-west of the country, marked the steepest decline among the ordinance-designated cities, which are vested with authority similar to that of prefectures in terms of social welfare and public health, among others. The city’s population declined by 6.5 per cent, from 970,000 to 910,000.
The shrinking population is prompting policymakers to review the designated cities system, which was based on the assumption of population growth.
Launched in 1956, the system was based on a certain level of population growth. Yokohama, Nagoya, Kyoto, Osaka, and Kobe were the first cities to be designated in 1956.
Shizuoka and six others have joined the group, after the government lowered its minimum requirement for designated cities from a population of one million to 700,000.
Comparing the basic residence register data of 2015 and 2025 as at Jan 1, Kitakyushu was followed by Shizuoka, which saw a 6 per cent drop from 710,000 to 670,000.
Data analysis showed that in contrast, Fukuoka marked the steepest population rise of 8.2 per cent to 1.60 million, followed by Saitama with an increase of 7.1 per cent to 1.35 million, and Kawasaki, up 6.2 per cent to 1.53 million.
According to the 2025 data and the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research’s 2050 estimates, Fukuoka and Kawasaki are the only two designated cities whose populations will not shrink by 2050.
Critics have pointed out that the designated cities have not been allocated enough financial resources in relation to their cumbersome duties, prompting some cross-party Diet members to push for the idea of turning them into “special cities” independent from prefectural governments. KYODO NEWS
