Yuko Obuchi, state minister for population and gender equality, pledged Monday to make her Cabinet colleagues aware of the seriousness of Japan's aging society and to ask them for cooperation at every opportunity.
"I'm willing to accept difficulty and criticism. I will directly face the problem (of the decline in the number of children) Japan has and give instructions to ministries and agencies to solve it," Obuchi, a 34-year-old mother who is the youngest Cabinet minister in the postwar period, said in an interview at her office. "And I will make these transactions transparent."
Obuchi, who gave birth to her son last September, also wants to ask women not to give up on having children while pursuing a career.