Seminar on the state of responsible lobbying in Japan

Research evidence excerpt

Seminar on the state of responsible lobbying in Japan

10 June 2026

Mizuho Securities Equity Research ESG

Industry Overview

No lobbying rules in Japan, but firms should be graded on responsible lobbying

This report looks at the 9 June Mizuho ESG+ seminar presentation given by

Akira Takahashi, Representative Director and COO of Makaira. In his talk titled

The State of ‘Responsible Lobbying’ in Japan, Mr. Takahashi explained the

current status of lobbying activity in Japan, and also looked at how there are

currently no defined regulations on lobbying in Japan, which is in contrast with

Western nations. He noted that even in the absence of regulations per se,

Japanese companies’ lobbying policies/activities and oversight status should

still be checked/monitored closely for consistency with the respective ESG

policies.

Public affairs is also expanding, but traditional players still have

a strong presence

At the beginning of every policy-formation process there are always "points

of concern" that arise in society and/or on the business front line, and

these ultimately reach lawmakers and bureaucrats and eventually inform

Analyst: policy through deliberation, debate, and consensus-building. Lobbying is the

Yuka Hayashibara activity of conveying these voices/concerns and providing the information input

+81 3 6202 8167 needed first to get an issue on the agenda, and then continuing to provide

yuka.hayashibara@mizuho-sc.com input so that deliberations and debate move forward on the appropriate course.

Analyst: In recent years, we have seen an increase in the approach known as public

affairs, which involves not just a single company or industry but a broad rangeKazunori Kishi

+81 3 6202 8371 of stakeholders, and which seeks to realize both private and public interests