Mergers will bring the number of cities, towns and villages in Japan to half the current figure by March 2005, according to a Kyodo News survey made available this week.
The survey found the number of municipalities is expected to decline to 1,727 from the current 3,176, with 1,942 of these merging into 493.
But some merger plans could be canceled due to disagreements over names or seat of government locations, as well as gaps in the fiscal health of merging entities.