‌Japan and ICT: an analysis of the core strategies and their implementation.

Abstract

The main intent of this dissertation is to analyse and present an overview of the history, economic opportunities, political framework and social application of the Information and Communications Technology (hereinafter ICT) undertaken by Japanese government throughout the last two decades. In order to get as complete a picture as possible, the first chapter will provide a detailed description of the historical evolution of ICT, from which technologies they developed, and which endemic characteristics of Japan helped to create the current state of ICT. Furthermore, after tracing the evolution of these technologies from a historical perspective, the policy framework and how its characteristics and its main components have influenced the evolution of ICT in Japan will be illustrated. In the second chapter of this dissertation, having analysed the peculiar characteristics of the historical and political evolution of ICT in the first chapter, the focus will shift to the economic opportunities of ICT and the opportunities it may present for modern Japan. In addition, some project management practices endemic to Japan will be analysed. The third chapter will be a detailed analysis regarding the introduction of the tax identification number, called "マイナンバー", introduced in the 2012 'unitary reform' of taxation-welfare by the Democratic Party of Japan. The intent is to provide a comprehensive view of the economic consequences of such a programme, while at the same time trying to draw parallels with the Japanese strategy and the Italian government's profiling programme called "Sistema Pubblico di Identità Digitale" or "SPID".