The Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Activities in the Aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami
The Japan Chamber of Commerce
and Industry (JCCI), in association with local CCIs, is making concerted efforts
to help Japan overcome its national crisis.
1. JCCI has checked on damage
to companies and local CCIs in devastated areas. Based on the findings of such investigations, JCCI has made
policy proposals to the government, such as for grants to secure employment in
the wake of the crisis.
2. In order to listen to the diverse views
of local people and to gain a clear picture of the damaged areas, the JCCI
chairman has made a total of sixteen visits to five damaged areas.
3. JCCI supports restoration efforts
of suffering SMEs to secure employment through the nationwide network of CCIs.
Examples include the following.
a. Dispatch of
JCCI staff members to local CCIs in damaged areas
b. Solicitation of donations to be used in reconstruction
projects for companies and local CCIs in devastated areas
(2.8 billion yen has been collected by JCCI.)
c. Launch of a web-based resource for
recovery from the disaster to provide information on financial matters, employment,
and electricity supply, and issuance of “certificates of environmental
radioactivity level” trade documents:
http://www.jcci.or.jp/region/tohokukantodaisinsai/(in Japanese)
d. Support
for the organization of product exhibitions and sales drives
e. Sales
support for local products from the Tohoku area.
4. JCCI has started the “Unused
Machinery and Equipment Matching Support System” to support the reconstruction of
businesses with machinery or equipment swept away or damaged in the earthquake
or tsunami. The project receives unused machinery and equipment free of charge
from businesses nationwide and provides it to businesses impacted by the earthquake
or tsunami in accordance with their needs.