Research Projects 2023

Research leader:

Fukunari Kimura (Professor, Keio University/Senior Researcher, APIR)

 

Research outline:

This project aims to examine the current state of production networks in East Asia, and the future of a rules-based international trade order. In addition, it aims to reaffirm the importance of free and open economic activities based on international trade rules, as well as the importance of balancing free economic activities with economic security amid the decoupling of supply chain in certain sectors.

Research leader:

Kenta Goto (APIR Senior Researcher/Professor, Faculty of Economics, Kansai University)

 

Research outline:

Acting in accordance with the SDGs, boosting ESG investment, and ensuring sustainable supply chains are indispensable factors when devising business strategies in Asia. In recent years, in particular, human rights have been gaining increasing attention. Accordingly, this project aims to explore how Japanese companies can implement the SDGs by leveraging their strengths in the global value chain of the textile industry.

Research leader:

Yoshihisa Inada(Director of Research & Director of the Center for Quantitative Economic Analysis, Asia Pacific Institute of Research/Professor Emeritus, Konan University)

 

Research outline:

Demand by inbound tourism in Kansai is recovering rapidly after the Covid-19 pandemic, and is expected to grow further before Expo 2025. In view of this, this project aims to contribute to the formulation of future tourism strategies by local governments, DMOs, and other actors, by analyzing current issues facing the tourism industry and exploring potential solutions. Our focus is quantitative analysis, and the creation of an index which can quantify and measure the brand power of tourism resources.

Research leader:

Shinji Shimojo (Senior Researcher, APIR/Professor, Aomori Univeristy)

 

Research outline:

This project aims to identify issues experienced in the past through case studies of smart cities, and to discuss the adjustments that will be needed in the future. It aims to propose directions how for data can be utilized and visualized using smart technology in order to improve the daily lives of ordinary citizens. Based on these recommendations, the project aims to contribute to the formulation and development of the “Osaka Super City” concept.

Research leader:

Matsushige, Hisakazu (APIR Senior Researcher/Professor, Takamatsu University/Emeritus Professor, Osaka University)

 

Research outline:

New technological innovations, notably AI and DX, are rapidly changing society and the way people work. Most workers are required to constantly upgrade their skills. In view of this dynamics, this project has two goals: (1) to identify the specific challenges Japanese companies are facing, as well as the ways they are dealing with these challenges, by conducting field research and surveys, and (2) based on this analysis, to make recommendations on how managerial flexibility and work-place resilience at Japanese companies can be enhanced.

Research leader:

Yoshihisa Inada (Director of Research & Director of the Center for Quantitative Economic Analysis, Asia Pacific Institute of Research/Professor Emeritus, Konan University)

 

Research outline:

The aim of this project is to investigate ways to attract investment and people to the Kansai region, by making reference to cities that have achieved economic growth. Furthermore, it aims to analyze how the Web society, including education and human resource development, has to change in order for elementary and junior high school students who will experience the Osaka-Kansai Expo in 2025 (the Expo 2025 generation) to become active players in the world by 2050.

Research leader:

Kazuhiro Seki (Senior Researcher, APIR/Professor, Konan University)

 

Research outline:

With the rapid development of information technology in recent years, large-scale data generated by domestic and international economic activities are becoming available in a variety of forms. The use of data containing extremely rich information, such as text data, is thought to be effective in making more precise judgments and forecasts of macroeconomic conditions. In view of this, this project aims to develop an index using text data, which can be instrumental in discerning economic trends.

Research leader:

Kikuo Takabayashi (Professor, Osaka University of Economics and Law)

 

Research outline:

Interregional Input-Output tables incorporate data from multiple regions and allow for an in-depth analysis of economic ripple effects resulting from trade and economic interdependencies among regions. In view of this, this project aims to finalize the official version of the 2015 Kansai Interregional Input-Output Table (assuming that data on Nara Prefecture will be released), as well as to re-estimate the economic ripple effect analysis of the Osaka-Kansai Expo in 2025.

※Greater Kansai includes the following eight prefectures: Fukui, Mie, Shiga, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyogo, Nara, Wakayama, Tottori, and Tokushima.
※The table is compiled for the years ending in 0 and 5, and there is a time lag of about five years between the year of data collection and the year of publication.