Significance of encouraging private consignment

(1) Public institutions such as national and local governments respond to increased needs of citizens and residents to receive high-quality public services in collaboration with the private sector to increase the value of public institutions.(2) Characteristics of the private sector such as ingenuity, pioneer spirits, flexibility, professionalism, and community-based approaches are incorporated into public services to maintain and improve the quality of and reduce the cost for public services.(3) A hopeful means to respond to demands for new "public spaces".(4)Private consignment, in which the government transfers public services to the private sector, reduces the cost and prevents an increase in or reduces the number of civil servants to establish a "simple and efficient government". A simple and efficient government is a basic objective of administrative reforms since 1980s because of severe financial conditions. However, political forces are gradually gaining momentum which insist that it is out-of-date to firmly maintain a "simple and efficient government" supposed to be equivalent to "small government" and market deregulation as basic objectives of the reforms; this is because there are increasing fears of a crisis in Japanese society where income gaps have been increasing and many non-regular employees have been fired before the end of their contracts in the serious economic downturn, for example.Private consignment makes public institutions play a role of "enablers" (coordinators) instead of direct "providers". Private consignment changes the role of public sector.(5) Private consignment is a means to offer opportunities for those who wish to achieve self-realization by participation in the society through volunteer activities and ambitious NPOs to join public activities. It is also a means to provide private companies with opportunities to play a public role in the society. It is further a means (mechanism) to satisfy the desire of baby boomers to take part in public activities for their purpose in life.(6) The idea of competition is incorporated into a process of providing public services by selecting the trustee by competitive bidding.(7) Some disciplines are established to make the private sector appropriately play a role as providers (such as trustees) of public services (the trustees must observe confidentiality and shall be treated as civil servants, for example)

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