Japan NPO Center

Japan NPO Center (JNPOC) held two events to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the NPO Law (Act on Promotion of Specified Non-profit Activities), which went into effect on December 1, 1998, and to discuss how we will be able to advance our civil society.

Forum to Commemorate the 25th Anniversary of the NPO Law: Let’s Envision the Civil Society of the Future Together

The event held at Seiryo Kaikan, near the Diet, and co-hosted with Seien, a specified nonprofit organization, was attended by around 200 people, including the members of Diet, representatives from businesses working with NPOs, academic researchers, and participants from nonprofits nationwide.

The panelists for the event comprised of Nara City’s Mayor Gen Nakagawa, who has years of experience at an NPO, and dozens of representatives of NPOs/NGOs from across Japan, including a senior high school student. They discussed and shared their own thoughts on the 25 years since the introduction of the law, their current activities, and aspirations for the future.

Civic Sector National Conference 2023: 25 Years after the NPO Law, What the Citizen Sector Needs Now

On the following day, December 2, around 180 people attended the National Conference held at the University of the Sacred Heart, Tokyo. In the opening panel discussion, Ms. Rika Fukuda of Panasonic Holdings, Ms. Mari Yamamoto of the Cabinet Secretariat, and Ms. Mariko Kiuchi of World Vision Japan deliberated what the citizen sector should be in Japan and their hopes for its roles for the future.

Then the participants proceeded to eight breakout sessions in which wide-ranging topics related to civil society and NPOs were debated, including communication between local councils and civil society, accounting rules for NPOs, human rights, and issues faced by women.

JNPOC will continue working for the further development of civil society in Japan.

Links:

• Event Outline: 25th Anniversary of NPO Law Forum (Japanese)
• Event Outline: Civic Sector National Conference 2023 (Japanese)

The impacts of the new coronavirus infection that has been ongoing since 2020 have brought to light social issues that had been previously not apparent. As the risks posed by various domestic and international situations increase, we have come to realize that Japanese NPOs are playing an even greater role in resolving these issues. The pandemic has also drastically changed our lifestyles. The widespread use of online conferencing systems enables us to connect with others beyond physical distance more than ever. But the same time, we feel more than ever the significance and importance of meeting with people directly to discuss and chat.

Last fiscal year (2022), we undertook several new projects based on our 2021-2025 Mid-term Vision. In particular, we increased our efforts in cooperation with field-specific network organizations, and gradually expanded such a subject-based approach alongside our traditional strength in business development with our regional partners. In addition, through discussions and advocacy activities with various organizations, we reaffirmed our belief that NPOs can spur the development of a community that can stem problems preemptively. In exchanging opinions with NPO support centers in various regions in Japan, we have learned that NPOs have come up with innovative styles for their activities whilst tackling the demands of their respective fields. However, they have also shared with us the challenges they face; the prolonged period of restrictions on activities requested by the national and local authorities has hindered the participation of the volunteers in their activities.

Under these circumstances, the fiscal year 2023, the first year of "With Corona," is a year of restarting activities in response to the new society.

We believe it is incumbent on us to develop further the initiatives we have undertaken in FY2022; we will respond to issues in various fields, promote collaboration and exchange of knowledge across fields, and expand such initiatives to our regional partners. It is vital we proactively disseminate the real-world knowledge gained from our activities and morph it into proposals to society as necessary.

To this end, we will strengthen our public relations capabilities and focus on expanding the number of members and supporters who reinforce such information dissemination and proposal makings.

To be an organization that can continually change itself in response to the ever-evolving social conditions, we will continue to exchange opinions closely with our members. We look forward to your continued support and cooperation so that together we can contribute to the civil sector development.

Our Mission:

As an infrastructure organization for the nonprofit sector, Japan NPO Center will strengthen the foundation of nonprofit organizations (NPOs) and build new and innovative partnership with government and private sector, encouraging them to act as Co-Creators of robust civil society.

Our Core Values:

• Always be on the side of the excluded and oppressed, and express solidarity with them
• Respect the views of the directly affected
• Look into root causes and tackle larger structural issues of society
• Give the highest priority to the lived realities of those on the ground
• Respect diversity and minority opinions
• Create a platform for open dialogue
• Be transparent and accountable

Links:

• Japan NPO Center English website
• Japan NPO Center Japanese website