Immigration has always been a difficult issue in Japan, which remains one of the world’s most racially homogeneous countries.
But predictions that the population of 127.2 million could shrink by two-thirds to about 43 million in the next century if it maintains its birth rate are forcing the government to move.
The administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has unveiled a radical plan to invite 200,000 immigrants a year.
Japan has experienced a chronically low birth rate since the 1980s, but government officials believe the country has to maintain a population of at least 100 million in order to remain economically competitive.
