How Japan’s new Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has adopted a bottom-up approach to governing and policy making
Swae Inclusive Leaders Spotlight Series
In the last 4 months since being elected, Japan’s new Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has pursued a more bottom-up approach to policy making, empowering and actively seeking bureaucrats’ voices and ideas around policy matters that deserve greater priority to reveal new opinions and creative solutions to various national challenges. This is a dramatic shift in philosophy and decision-making style from the preceding administrations of Prime Ministers Yoshihide Suga and Shinzo Abe who during their nine years of rule pursued a more traditional and top-down approach to decision-making. During their administrations, policy formulation and prioritization — from foreign diplomatic policy to the acceleration of coronavirus vaccinations — originated and was executed almost exclusively from the top down (from the prime minister’s office). While efficient, the consequences on human capital and public trust were reportedly significant. Many claim that those nine years had a chilling effect on culture, morale, risk-taking and retention amongst public servants within different government departments, while accountability to the public appeared to atrophy.
While there are mixed reactions to Prime Minister Kishida’s more open and bottom-up governing style, we at Swae are excited to hear of such a leader in a mainstream and highly consequential role recognizing the shortcomings of top-down approaches to decision-making and trying new ways to define a more inclusive model of leadership, to make smarter public policy decisions.
As Prime Minister Kishida continues carving out his unique vision of the leader he wants to become, and as the challenges associated with widening the bureaucracy’s discretionary power and involvement in policy prioritization begin to show, the benefits of a more bottom-up approach seems to be quite strong on morale and public opinion. A nationwide public opinion poll by the Mainichi Shimbun on Dec. 18, 2021, showed the Cabinet’s approval rating was up by 6 percentage points from the previous month to 54%, this coming amid a period of heightened tension around the new strain of Covid-19.
How much more decision-making power and what issues will PM Kishida further delegate to his bureaucracy? Time will tell. In his Jan. 4th press conference he shared glimpses into his decision-making principles, “One must listen to many voices, and when necessary, make decisions resolutely.” “Whether it’s top-down or bottom-up, being able to use the appropriate approach at the appropriate time is smart politics.”
We hope 2022 produces more of these types of leaders. We strongly believe Swae can support them in their attempt to make more inclusive, intelligent decisions from the bottom-up.
For more information about PM Kishida see here: https://lnkd.in/dN2HMe7s
