Atsushi Sugiyama, director-general for Policy Planning at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure & Transport (MLIT) in charge of international/cargo transport/crisis management, talked at a press briefing held on Nov. 15 about the general framework for the comprehensive logistics policies (2005-2009) approved by the Cabinet the same day. "An alliance among logistics service providers, shippers, the relevant governmental agencies and local governments is of utmost importance to ensure the effectiveness/implementation of the policies concerned. We hope to set the targets and push forth more detailed measures by the end of this fiscal year," he said.


The salient points made by Sugiyama are as follows.

[General framework for comprehensive logistics policies]


             There were three major changes in the policy outline for fiscal 2001 promulgated in July 2001. The three major changes are: (1) the center of international logistics has significantly moved to the East Asian region from Europe and the U.S., (2) there is a need to intensify environmental measures in accordance with the coming into force of the Kyoto Protocol, and (3) there is a mounting clamor for stepping up safety/security measures following the terrorist attacks on U.S. soil in 2001. To cope with these changes, we will aim to realize speedy logistics, earth-friendly green logistics and a logistics system that promotes stability, as well as a logistics system that attaches great importance to the demand side. We hope to engage in various activities and eliminate bottlenecks and problems, while utilizing the international logistics strategy teams and other resources available in the Kansai region and other localities.