Press Release

報道資料

For Immediate Release

ACCJ “Diet Doorknock” Marks
Milestone 20th Year
December 14, 2015 – The American Chamber of Commerce inJapan (ACCJ) carried out its 20th “Diet Doorknock” last week. The
Diet Doorknock, led by ACCJ President Jay Ponazecki over thecourse of the past three days, brought together 65 ACCJ leadersand members who met with approximately 40 Japanese
government officials and legislators including Cabinet members.
This year marks the 20th ACCJ Diet Doorknock, the Chamber’s
largest consolidated advocacy event in Japan. Leaders andmembers of the ACCJ have met with hundreds of officials and Diet
members over 20 years in this valuable channel of communicationand information-exchange between the Japanese government andrepresentatives of the ACCJ and U.S. industry.	 
A key goal of this year’s Diet Doorknock was to encourage greater
engagement and discussion surrounding Japan’s long-term
economic growth, and to offer up practical, solutions-based
recommendations founded in global best practices as the Japanese
government considers additional measures to revitalize theJapanese economy.
The ACCJ identified three principal themes for the Diet Doorknock
this year, which, if achieved, will be some of the most effectivemeans of fostering further economic growth in Japan over the longterm. Specifically, these are:ll

Ratification and implementation
Partnership (TPP) agreement;

oftheTrans-PacificFurther progress on womenomics and labor mobility reforms;
andThe American Chamber of Commerce in Japan
Masonic 39 MT Bldg. 10F, 2-4-5 Azabudai, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0041
在日米国商工会議所 〒106-0041東京都港区麻布台2-4-5 メソニック39MTビル10階
Tel: 03-3433-5381 Fax: 03-3433-8454 Web: www.accj.or.jp

lContinued forward movement on the Japanese government’s
proposed structural reforms.

As part of the commemoration of the 20th Diet Doorknock, the ACCJ
held a half-day series of panel discussions featuring thought leadersfrom both the public and private sectors as well as academia todiscuss and offer insights in three key areas anticipated to drive
future economic growth in Japan: Financial Services, the Internet
Economy and Healthcare.
“Over the past 20 years, the ACCJ Diet Doorknock has been
instrumental to opening new avenues of communication between
the ACCJ and our friends in the Diet and the Ministries, to bridging
the distance between the private and public sectors with the aim of
fostering further economic growth in Japan and to further
cementing a key channel of engagement that brings our two great
countries even closer together. We are grateful to all of the officials
who have taken time to meet with our members this year and overtwo decades. Our commitment to Japan has never been stronger,”
said Ponazecki.
“With the conclusion of the TPP negotiations in October, this year’sDiet Doorknock was particularly important because of the historic
opportunity to engage with Japanese lawmakers on the significant
benefits to the Japanese economy of moving forward with theprompt ratification and implementation of the TPP agreement,” shecontinued.
The Diet Doorknock is organized by the ACCJ’s Government
Relations Committee, chaired by Arthur Mitchell, who said, “Therobust relationship that the ACCJ has forged with the Japanese
government over almost seven decades, and especially over thepast 20 years of the Diet Doorknock, has facilitated the exchange ofideas on how industry and government can work together toenhance competitiveness and productivity with the ultimate goal ofsustained economic growth in Japan. The ACCJ chose to focus muchof its engagement in meetings this year to achieve further progresson the key cross-cutting themes of TPP, labor mobility, including
womenomics, and the government’s robust structural reform
agenda. The business leaders who take part in the Diet Doorknock
bring with them deep expertise and knowledge in their particularindustry sectors as well as an abiding commitment to improving thebusiness environment in Japan.”
The American Chamber of Commerce in Japan
Masonic 39 MT Bldg. 10F, 2-4-5 Azabudai, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0041
在日米国商工会議所 〒106-0041東京都港区麻布台2-4-5 メソニック39MTビル10階
Tel: 03-3433-5381 Fax: 03-3433-8454 Web: www.accj.or.jp

###1510 E
About ACCJThe American Chamber of Commerce in Japan (ACCJ) was established in 1948 byrepresentatives of 40 American companies and has grown into one of the mostinfluential business organizations in Japan. Consisting mainly of executives fromAmerican companies, currently the ACCJ has members representing 1,000
companies with offices in Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka. Working closely with thegovernments of the United States and Japan, business organizations, and others,
the ACCJ promotes activities that help achieve its mission of further developing
commerce between the United States and Japan, promoting the interests of U.S.
companies and members, and improving the international business environment
in Japan. The ACCJ’s more than 60 committees represent a variety of industries
and make policy recommendations through advocacy tools such as viewpoints,
public comments and white papers. The ACCJ holds approximately 500 eventsand seminars a year, many of which focus on government policy and economic
trends. The ACCJ is also committed to promoting charitable events and CSR
activities.
PRESS CONTACT: ACCJ
external@accj.or.jp).

External

Affairs(phone:0334336542;

The American Chamber of Commerce in Japan
Masonic 39 MT Bldg. 10F, 2-4-5 Azabudai, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0041
在日米国商工会議所 〒106-0041東京都港区麻布台2-4-5 メソニック39MTビル10階
Tel: 03-3433-5381 Fax: 03-3433-8454 Web: www.accj.or.jp

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