Regional Revitalization - local
perspectives
Mr. Oka Yuusuke of Itoshima City Office in Fukuoka wasawarded the ‘Minister for Regional Innovation Prize’ and‘Teikoku Databank Award’ in the policy idea contest held in
2016. Mr. Oka’s winning idea was on the application ofcorporate management techniques to local government policy.

Mr. Oka’s thought processin policy planning andanalysis will be introducedin this section.

Teikoku Data Bank
Industrial Research - Advanced Data
Solutions Division

Takanori Mutsunobu

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XRESAS ContestRegional Revitalization Ministerial Prize andTeikoku Databank Award
Itoshima City Office Planning PublicRelations Division-Department Secretary

Mr. Yuusuke Oka

Regional Revitalization☆Policy
Idea Contest - Winners views on
what evidence-based policy
making is

It is desirable for policy making to be based ondata analysis and factual evidence, instead ofobscure reasons like ‘living in the region for along time, so he/she should know’; or’ he/sheis usually right’.

Contest Winner“The Itoshima Marketing
Model Inspires RegionalEnterprises”〜Creates a new brand for Itoshima City,Fukuoka, and enriches the regional economy〜

Regional Revitalization
Ministerial Prize &Teikoku Databank Award【Thoughts on Local Government Management】■Background on policy planning(Oka） Create a brand based on the land, its culture and history and use it totell a story.
(Oka）Itoshima is historically known for its treasure trove of ingredients. By
promoting Itoshima’s produce, not just as food ingredients but also asstories related to its land, culture and history, Itoshima’s image of anabundant and delicious food producer is likely to deepen.
(Oka) For example, the successful sales of the regional delicacy “Futomozuku”
was a achieved under the regional revitalization program to promote
Itoshima City.
(Oka) The reason for entering regional revitalization from the branding angle isbecause the Mayor felt it was important for the people to feel the regions
richness.
■Results from branding Itoshima(Mutsunobu）Do you think the strongly favorable response to “like Itoshima” inthe Citizens’ Satisfaction Survey, is in response to PR and branding
activity?
(Oka） I do feel the PR and branding activity has made the local citizens proud
to be associated with Itoshima. I also feel the events and other local
activity has increased since the PR activity.
(Oka) Itoshima’s goal is to be an affluent society. Although we are yet to achieve
economic affluence, I think it is important for people to feel a sense of
pride and richness in their hearts, for future prosperity.

【Officials' Admiration for the Region will Promote Local Government
Management】■Necessary qualities in local government officials(Oka) Policy planning based on business management is not yet common in local
governments. It is important for local government officials to have abusiness perspective and data analysis perspective.
(Oka) Local governments will have to actively engage in the promotion of local
produce together with private sector businesses to create markets for local
goods. In due time, I feel it will not be just one local government but acollection of local governments working together in the promotion of goods
and the creation of new market opportunities for businesses.

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1１ Understanding the current situation
In addition to RESAS, analysis ofadministrative data provides
valuable insights on the overall
picture i.e. strong industries; weakindustries; and areas of growth. Theanalysis was carried out using
methods such as decompositionand comparison.

What We Know from Data Analysis
The state of tourism in Itoshima
Importance of the tourism industry.
The state of agriculture in Itoshima
Decline of small scale farming units.
Importance of support programs aimed
at these small scale units.

【From Macro to Micro】■Using RESAS and other data(Mutsunobu ） RESAS emphasizes the flow from ‘macro’ to ‘micro’.
However, local governments tend to think about their area bylooking at its micro components since it can be easily seen andwithin hands reach.
(Oka） Although local autonomy strategies are commonly discussed, theideas proposed in the RESAS competition were very unique.
(Oka）One of the reasons why RESAS has not spread widely among local
government offices is because I feel it is hard to understand how
it relates to ones work. If the user runs into some problem while
using it, I think they will decide not to use it.
(Mutsunobu）What RESAS informs us about is the results of corporateactivity. The underpinning factors that gave rise to a particular
result cannot be understood with RESAS data alone. Instead, it isimportant that RESAS data is supplemented with other data sets.
Additionally, it is important that local government officials
develop the necessary skills in hypothesis formulation andtesting (※1).
※1 Hypothesis formulation and testing：hypothesis formulation and testing is an
important activity of evidence-based research as it provides the framework fordrawing conclusions of a research endeavor.

The state of fisheries in Itoshima
Family fishing units are mainly engaged
in oyster farming. Successful branding
campaigns have help increase the sales
in these small scale units.
The state of commercial activity inItoshima
Small businesses have helped drive
Itoshima’s economic revitalization andcontributed to regional job creation.

+

What we know from Interviews●Many issues related to marketing●Qualitative analysis has resulted inmany opinions on marketing support

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2２ Identifying the Issues
SWOT analysis was used to get a better
understanding of the business environment.
The importance of the marketing business
was bought to the fore in
the analysis.

External

Internal

Business Environmentof Itoshima+−【Strength】• Growth in the food industry• Success stories such as theoyster brand• Proximity to Fukuoka• Establishment of the Food
Industry Cluster Association【Weakness】• Large number of very small
business• Little diversity in industry
beyond food and othersupporting industries• Limited marketing strategy【Opportunities】• Mass media exposure• Increase in tourism• Improvement in marketingskills【Threats】• Brand damage due toaccidents etc• Rise of competing
municipalities• Economic stagnation

Utilizestrength

Eliminate
weakness

Identifying Solutions
Focus on growing the ‘foodindustry’, by targeting theneighboring Fukuoka metropolitan
area and increasing the marketingof this industry【Identifying the Issues】■Management perspective(Oka) Even now, in local governments it is common to just look at the tax
revenue and the number of large enterprises in the region to describe
the wealth in the area. However, in order to accurately understand thefinancial situation of the local government I feel it is important to look at
the financial statements.
(Mutsunobu) Even with knowledge of business management, if one is not
sure how far to think ahead from a practical perspective, workshops
are an effective way of using and applying the knowledge.

■Lessons from other regions(Oka) One of the special feature of RESAS is the ability to compare with otherlocal governments. For example, although Itoshima’s specialization
coefficient for the production of food and beverage is twice that of thenational average, it still lags behind other food and beverages producing
regions. If the specialization coefficient is increased to the level of otherpredominantly food producing regions, Itoshima’s products are more
likely to become well known nationally. ※2）。
(Oka) Although many local governments are using RESAS to compare theirregions with other nearby regions, often the investigation does notadvance from there.
(Mutsunobu) TDB’s corporate data has a number of different indicatorsthat enable comparisons to be made. For example, using TDBs data
it is possible to compare two or more local governments with similarindustrial structure and similar features across other indicators.
Identifying appropriate points of comparisons is an important skill forstrategy planning in local governments.
(Oka) I strongly believe it is important not to simply imitate other studies,instead, it is important to use and analyze data based on what the
local government is trying to do. Although other studies may serve as amotivation, local government case studies should be planned andexecuted independently.
(Mutsunobu) When analyzing the current situation or planning an effectivestrategy, it is important to consider the feasibility first. By first identifying
the feasibility and then appropriately setting the strategy the likelihoodof success will increase.
※2

Principle of comparative advantage: Advocated by economist David Ricardo, the theory suggests thatdomestic and foreign trading partners can consume even more goods if they engage in free trade andspecialize in the production of goods that have a relative advantage in producing.

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3【Increasing the Feasibility by Clearly Defining the Issue andIdentifying Appropriate Action(s)】Proposal of Solutions

We are breaking down the elements ofmarketing and thinking about the role ofproblem solving. The plan can be realizedwith a low budget and labor savings withappropriate organization and engagement.

■ Identifying appropriate actions

Breakdown of Roles and Responsibility
Product
Development

Market Research（Consignment from theCity）
Basic material for building a
regional model of consumer
viewpoint.

Distribution
Support（High schools)

Collaboration with local highschools specializing in commerce
to tackle issues related todistribution etc.

（Cluster Association）

Drawing on the ingredients
produced in city, develop sales
channels, advertising andproblem solving models.

【Using Data Analysis to Identify Problem and Creating EffectivePolicies 】■Effective policy making(Oka)

Advertisement（Special companies）
Collaborate with companies thatspecialize in regional-based
advertising and publicity.

Marketing Promotion Model
ProductDevelopment

Market Promotion
Team

Exit Strategy

Itoshima City
Food Industry
ClusterAssociation• Research firms• Distribution
support• Advertising• Intellectual
Property
Management• Secretariat• Understanding ofmarket size• Understanding growthrateSelection of market
segment• Selection of sales
channels• Recognition ofbusiness products

Collaborations

As you clearly define the issue, the necessary action will flow naturally fromthe analysis. If the issue is not properly defined one will be left with 3-4
possible options making the execution difficult.
(Mutsunobu) In terms of action and execution, it is important to draw on the specialist
skills of various partners. This will ensure effective execution of market research,
product development, distribution support and marketing and promotion.
(Oka) When local skill are insufficient, it is important to partner withindividuals/businesses outside the region for effective execution.
(Oka)

(Oka)
(Oka)

The policies proposed in the contest were adopted by the city with the help of abudget sourced from the grants from the regional revitalization policy. Sharing ofroles helped keep the costs to a minimum and the cost of product development
was undertaken by Itoshima City Food Industry Cluster Association.
The amount initially requested to execute the idea and the amount invoiced by
the professional advertising agency were important information for the budget
request.
The extensive focus on ‘food industry’, did give rise to discussions on theunfairness on other industries in the region. However, analysis of the data,showed, it was the food industry that would benefit the most from theadditional support.

■Effectiveness of incentives to attract businesses(Oka)

Attracting companies to the region is important. Even if there are no corecompanies, there should be policies targeted at the smaller enterprises so we
can utilize the strength arising from large numbers.
(Mutsunobu) Using subsidies as an incentive for companies to relocate their
headquarters, will not eliminate regional issues. Instead it is more effective tofocus on services that are missing in the region and supporting regionalentrepreneurs. If the region has a company that works across a number ofdifferent industries, any support programs that are targeted at the company
will have also have positive implications for the region. Furthermore, any
money earned from outside the region will be circulated within theregion.(※3）※3) The theory advocated by Michael E. Porter. Describes corporate activity as a chain of processes from theprocurement of raw materials to the sale of products to customers, with value added at each stage. .

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