Japan's gross national product will have a nominal GDP of 541 trillion yen and a real GDP of 539 trillion yen in fiscal 2021. On the other hand, the outstanding balance of national bonds, which are the national debt, is approximately 1,000 trillion yen, and the outstanding amount of local bonds, which are the debt of local governments, is approximately 200 trillion yen. When the national and local governments are combined, the total amount reaches approximately 1,200 trillion yen. From a human standpoint, debt is money that must be repaid. If a town has a budget of 1 billion yen, it must have a tax revenue of 1 billion yen. If we run out of financial resources, things will be tough. Yubari City in Hokkaido is one such municipality. Yubari City was forced into financial bankruptcy, and its 11 elementary and junior high schools were consolidated into one school at a time. If Japan's cities, towns and villages simply remain silent and watch this situation unfold, they will fall into ruin.
There is a local government model that does not require any money. It can be found in Swiss villages. In a village in Switzerland, all employees, including the village chief, are part-time. There is no special council room; village councils are held in the village's multi-purpose room. It has less than 10 members and is responsible for running the parliament. The point is, it's good if the village gets better. The multi-purpose room is made from solid wood sourced locally and can be repaired at any time by a local carpenter. A village hall in Switzerland has many functions. The library, which opens once a week, is thriving. You don't have to open it every day. As long as the books are lent out properly, readers will read in a planned manner. In addition to an elementary school, this Swiss village hall also has corporate tenants and a cafe facing the square. The village's finances are in the black.
Izumisano City, Osaka Prefecture, expected an increase in tax revenue due to the opening of Kansai International Airport. Investments made in anticipation of increased tax revenue turned into debt when the bubble burst. To survive this crisis, they have streamlined their operations. Izumisano City outsourced counter operations to the private sector over a three-year period starting in 2015. As a result, they were able to reduce the number of employees by approximately 50 people, including temporary staff. Not satisfied with just saving money, some municipalities have created a system to earn money. The regional development of Shiwa Town in Iwate Prefecture is famous. Volunteers from the town took over town-owned land that had been abandoned for over 10 years. This town-owned land has grown into a business district that attracts more than 800,000 people annually. By leasing unused town land for a fee, the company achieved unimaginable business success. Even though Shiwa Town's population is decreasing, local taxes are increasing.