Consideration on the Counterpart Method by Union of Kansai Governments

Abstract

Reciprocal support becomes indispensable with frequent occurrence of large-scale disasters. “Pairing Assistance”, which was practiced in Sichuan Earthquake in 2008 by Chinese government, was referred to by Union of Kansai Governments during Great East Japan Earthquake. This is named “Counterpart Method” in Japan and based on it “ Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications System” was established in 2018. By literature search and interviews, this paper researches the feature of this method and draws a conclusion that it is of great help in alleviating the lack of manpower in local government so as to better cope with disastrous situation.