Japan experienced the largest drop in the number of citizens last year, with all 47 prefectures seeing declines for the first time. The number of non-Japanese residents, however, surged to a record high, stemming some of the population loss, according to government data released on Wednesday.
New data from the internal affairs ministry revealed that the population of Japanese nationals stood at around 122.42 million as of Jan. 1, a decrease of over 800,000 compared to a year prior and the 14th straight year-on-year drop.
Yu Korekawa, director of the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research (IPSS), said he is not surprised about the continued decrease, but noted it is critical to pay attention to the rise of Japan’s foreign population.