Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi believes the Japanese economy cannot recover without structural reform. As the first step in translating this political philosophy into action, he is working on reforming inefficient government-affiliated public corporations.

Attention is now being focused on which government-affiliated-public corporations will undergo reform and how. Specific programs toward that end were presented to and approved by the secretary generals of the coalition parties when Koizumi met with them Nov. 22. The principal points were:

(1) Four public corporations related to highway construction will be unified into one entity that subsequently will be divided and privatized. The corporations' debt-repayment period will be extended from 30 years to 50 years.