Japanese economy was badly affected when earthquake hit off the eastern coasts of Japan, sparking a tsunami. The earthquake made already stagnant Japanese economy more vulnerable to its long term debt problems, stoking fears that economy could face a serious fiscal crisis. In a bid to respond to the economic problems, Japanese government pushed for economic reforms that would stimulate Japan’s sluggish economy. Government’s policies yielded its fruits; the economy has grown by 4,1% in the first quarter of 2013. The numbers increase the hope that the country’s economic outlook is gathering momentum.

SETA invites you to a panel by Seiichiro Yonekura and Hiroshi Shimizu of Hitotsubashi University to discuss Japanese reforms to tackle country’s economic challenges. The panel will be chaired by Talip Küçükcan, SETA Foreign Policy Program Coordinator.

Seiichiro Yonekura Professor Yonekura received his B.A.s (in both Social Studies and Economics) and M.A. in Social Studies from Hitotsubashi University, and Ph.D. in History from Harvard University in Cambridge, the United States. His research interests have been focused on the historical development of innovation and entrepreneurship. He is a prolific author of numerous titles on a wide range of subjects.

Hiroshi Shimizu is an assistant professor at Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo. He received his B.A. in Business Management from Chuo University, M.A. in History from Northwestern University, and Ph.D. in History from London School of Economics. His research interests include innovation in general purpose technology, historical development of inventive activity in Japan, market structures and innovation and etc. He has numerous publications in several journals.

Note: The event will be held in English.