From deficit to surplus: Lessons for Japan

On May 24th, our own Allan Edwards presented his thoughts about how Canada's experiences with debt reduction could provide useful food for thought for those struggling to regain control of Japan's debt crisis. A few of our enthusiastic attendees kindly submitted a short overview of this event.

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My First (but not last!) KCBA Event
-Enrica Ruan

This was my first time joining a KCBA event, so at first I was a little apprehensive. However, in the end, this turned out to be an informative and pleasant experience.

The event, entitled “From deficit to surplus: Canada's story of hope and the Challenges ahead for Japan,” was based on a presentation given by Canadian Consular Offical Allan Edwards. The topic was about how the Government of Canada and its people managed to turn its enormous deficit into a surplus in only a few years. Mr. Edwards began by explaining why managing the deficit situation is so important, then briefly explained Canada’s dire financial situation in the 1980s, followed by its numerous efforts to reduce spending. Those efforts, he explained, did not succeed overnight; it took the Canadian government several years before they found the way. The presentation summarized the many important lessons learned by this experience, as well as some of the key differences between Canada and Japan. Mr. Edwards stressed how perhaps the Japanese government could look to Canada's experience for guidance as they try to turn around the current financial problems here in Japan.

I believe that this topic would definitely interest anyone who cares about Japan today, and Mr. Edwards was a very entertaining speaker. He presented the subject in fluent Japanese, and told the story in a way that was easy for everyone to understand. Not only does he grasp the background and the story of the topic thoroughly, with his great sense of humour he also brought a lot of joy to everyone in the room. 

The event was held at “Corso Italia,” an Italian restaurant with a casual and friendly atmosphere. Following this inspiring presentation, we were served with a full array of tasty foods. It was nice networking with great people from different backgrounds in a relaxed and fun atmosphere. I am eagerly awaiting the next KCBA event!

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Event in May 24
-Gojo Masashi
-Gojo Real Estate Co. Ltd.

On May 24th, I attended a KCBA event entitled “From deficit to surplus. Canada's story of hope and the Challenges ahead for Japan”. The presentation was given by Canadian Consular offical Allan Edwards.

After a brief introduction, Mr. Edwards started the presentation in Japanese. He saw the Japanese deficit from the political aspect and warned that the high deficit against GDP ratio forces the Japanese government to have less choices on political decisions and its operations.

He mentioned that for the Canadian Prime Minister at that time, Brian Mulroney, decreasing the national deficit was an unpopular idea, as most Canadians did not take the deficit situation very seriously. Mr. Edwards said it is common that society does not welcome the idea of decreasing the deficit. He stressed the importance of ministers and bureaucrats working together on creating a national budget based on political priorities. He showed us the track record of Canadian deficit, how Canada was able to turn around a massive deficit into a surplus, and finished the presentation suggesting that even at a slow pace, decreasing a national deficit has a great power in a long run.

After the presentation, we had a Q&A session. There was a question regarding the key to the Canadian success, which led us to the lively talk about the difference between the Canadian leadership and the Japanese leadership. While there was a question if the Canadian way of decreasing the deficit really works in Japan, he answered that it is a matter of choice if you choose to decrease the deficit, there is a way. The Canadian model shows it is not impossible to decrease the deficit and even if it is a slow pace, it really does work in the long run.

The presentation, given in Japanese, was followed by a cocktail party. People began to mingle and network; it was a very international gathering. Before closing the event, we recognized the services of Mr. Edwards, whose posting in Japan will end this year.

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株式会社タカセコーポレーション
高瀬　英将

５月２４日福島にあるイタリア料理店オステリア・コルソ・イタリアで関西カナダビジネスアソシエーション主催、大阪商工会議所共催、関西日加協会協力の下、在名古屋カナダ総領事館領事アラン・エドワード氏を招いて講演会が実施された。

題目は「財政赤字を黒字転化： カナダの成功例から日本が学べること」

１９８０年代にマルニーニ首相が実施した政策を中心にエドワード氏独特のユーモアと日本への「愛」が感じられる非常に内容の濃いものだった。加えて全講演が「日本語」で実施され、エドワード氏の日本への熱い思いがより一層伝わるものとなった。

座席配置もいつもは講義式なのが、非常にリラックスした配置で実施され、講演後も心行くまでイタリア料理に舌鼓を打ちながら、カナダへの思いを参加者全員で語り合い非常に有意義なものだった。