Chapter 9 - Understanding and partnership
Introduction
9.1
In this chapter, the Committee draws together
some of the broader themes developed during the inquiry. In doing so, it turns
its attention to Australia and
how Australians can work to improve their relationship with Japan. The Committee looks specifically at
the need to develop a strong mutual understanding between the two countries so
they can develop a fruitful and lasting partnership.
Commitment to deepening the
Australia-Japan relationship
9.2
The Committee does not accept that the
Australia-Japan relationship has reached a low point and that the relationship
is ‘floundering’. It does, nonetheless, take careful note of the warning given
by some witnesses about complacency creeping into the relationship and
acknowledges the call for Australia to work harder toward cultivating its relationship with Japan. As a first step, the Committee
fully endorses the view that Australia needs to reaffirm its commitment to Japan.[1]
But, it also recognises that practical measures must be taken to give substance
to any reaffirmation and this means acknowledging any problems in the
relationship and cooperating with Japan to reach solutions. It also means accepting that the
Australia-Japan relationship must go beyond political pronouncements and
diplomatic exchanges and that much work still needs to be done toward further
developing the relationship particularly at the business level and in the
general community.
9.3
Trade is not solely about economics and, as
noted by a number of witnesses, trust and partnership are integral to any
trading relationship. Mr Leon Wolff suggested that Australians need to strive for a higher level of
sophistication and to achieve a degree of openness and trust in the
Australia-Japan relationship.[2]
Professor William Coaldrake made the point:
You may profit more by treating people not as products and as
markets but as collaborators in the long term.[3]
9.4
In reaffirming its commitment to the
Australia-Japan relationship, Australia needs to convey a clear message to Japan that it is prepared to stay for the long journey in developing and
deepening their association. A number of witnesses submitted that Australians
should be ‘patient with Japan
as it finds its way through a maze of economic, political and social challenges’.[4] Mr Wolff told the Committee
that, ‘If we pressure for immediate results, I think we will get band-aid
solutions, but if we are prepared to discuss and engage with Japan over the
medium and longer term, we will get something far stronger.’[5] The Committee agrees.
9.5
Indeed, it is in Australia’s wider interest to be as tolerant and sympathetic as possible on
matters where Japan has real or
perceived vulnerabilities. Australia should offer reassurance and show its readiness to assist Japan through this time of economic
difficulty and change but at the same time it must show it is prepared to take
a firm stand on matters of principle when its own interests are under threat.
The recent issue over the tariffication of rice provides an example of the
delicate balance required between supporting a trading partner and protecting
national interest.
The need for both partners to
develop an understanding of the other
9.6
Evidence presented to the Committee
overwhelmingly reinforced the view that, to assess accurately the nature of the
Australia-Japan association and then to take the relationship forward, both
countries must have a genuine appreciation of how the other works. Knowledge of
society, politics, economics and of law lay at the heart of developing a greater
mutual appreciation between the two countries. Improving diplomatic and problem
solving skills, particularly the ability to analyse current issues across a
range of disciplines, is also important.[6]
9.7
In turning more specifically to safeguarding and
promoting Australia’s economic
interests, witnesses emphasised the need to be able to comprehend fully what is
happening in Japan. Indeed, one
of the most consistent messages coming out of the inquiry was the need for
Australians to have an understanding of the over-arching socio-political
architecture that shapes the trade policies of Australia’s most important trading partner.
9.8
When Australians become disappointed with
Japanese decisions, this reaction often stems from a misunderstanding of how
Japanese society works—of unrealistic expectations. According to Mr Christopher Pokarier,
Australians do not pay attention to interest group dynamics in Japanese
politics. He stated:
If we had watched much more closely just how much their rural
interests were hurting and had seen the political vulnerability of the LDP...it
would not have surprised us...they would not have dared risk alienating their
rural constituencies. If we had that in mind, we would not have been so shocked
by the rice tariffication decision.
...
...lots of people can understand in a general sense why farmers
would want to protect their economic interests, but I do not think there is a
broad understanding of how they make their interests politically salient in
Japan. I think that is really the crux of it; that we should be better
political economists more than anything else.[7]
9.9
The need to be fully aware of developments in
Japan and to be able to assess how they will influence Australia is vital to
Australia’s interests especially at this time of rapid change and economic
uncertainties. Professor Drysdale highlighted the importance for Australia to
develop a clear understanding of the big changes that are taking place in Japan
now, since ‘misreading those changes in our largest economic partner would
potentially damage our long-term strategic interests in the region and
internationally’.[8]
The Australia-Japan Foundation loudly endorsed this view. It believed that
Australia has to be very clever about the way it changes its trading
relationship with Japan as it moves out of heavy industry.[9]
9.10
As pointed out by DFAT:
We need to continue to review that relationship to ensure that
it retains its momentum and grows and develops to embrace new opportunities
which come about as a result of change in both our societies. This includes
exploring new commercial and other links going beyond the traditional areas to
include challenges in IT, financial services, health and medical care and so
on.[10]
9.11
Clearly, in this environment of change; of
restructuring; of shifting trading patterns and economic uncertainties;
Australia needs at hand the resources and skills necessary to understand and
analyse the nature of the changes in Japan and their ramifications for the
Australian economy. DFAT suggested that this level of understanding and analysis
can be achieved through ‘the maintenance and strengthening of current
institutional arrangements and furtherance of high-level political, official,
business and people-to-people contacts’.[11]
The Committee agrees and has made recommendations along these lines in Chapters
6 and 7. A number of witnesses, however, went to the very fundamentals of the
relationship—Australia’s level of understanding of the culture, traditions and
beliefs that shape Japanese society and guide its decision makers.
Understanding through language
9.12
One of the most notable advances that Australia
has made in attaining a better understanding of Japan is through the teaching
of the Japanese language in Australian schools. Indeed, the Japanese language
has become a popular area of study in Australia.
9.13
Professor Rix told the Committee that Australia
has invested an enormous amount in learning about Japan and working with Japan.
He drew special attention to the Japanese language programs in Australia’s
education system, the breadth of the study of Japan in the tertiary sector at
universities, and the array of capacity within the government in dealing with
Japan. In the last 25 years, he argued, Australia had ‘come an enormously long
way’ in teaching Japanese language. He told the Committee that Australia is
well served at the diplomatic level in Japan, noting that the embassy in Tokyo
is one of the best embassies in terms of linguistic capacities of any in that
city.[12]
9.14
The Japan Foundation told the Committee that
there are more than 300,000 students of Japanese language in Australia. A
similar survey from 1993 showed that there were around 180,000 students of
Japanese. Over this 5-year period there has been a 70 per cent increase in the
number of Australian students choosing to learn the Japanese language. As a
percentage of the population, Australia ranks second behind Korea in the number
of Japanese language students. Korea has more than 940,00 students studying the
Japanese language.[13]
9.15
Closer scrutiny reveals, however, that 97 per
cent of those studying the Japanese language in Australia are at primary and
secondary school levels.[14]
According to the Department of Education over 5,000 students a year, or one in
60 of the students who have studied Japanese language at school, go on to take
Japanese as part of their year 12 assessment that is at the higher school
certificate level.[15]
9.16
The Japan Foundation Language Centre was
concerned that although the number of students has increased in the primary and
secondary levels, the ratio of students to teachers ‘indicates that there is
room for improvement’. It quoted 1998 figures to show that the increase in
teachers of the Japanese language was only 39 per cent as compared with the 70
per cent increase in student numbers. It concluded that there is a shortage of
suitably qualified teachers at the primary and secondary schools.[16]
9.17
The Foundation was also concerned that the high
number of students undertaking Japanese language studies at school level are
not successfully carrying through to the tertiary sector.[17]
9.18
Without doubt, Australia has made great strides
in encouraging the study of Japanese language although the problem about the
shortage of qualified teachers in Australian schools needs to be addressed. In
turning specifically to tertiary institutions, however, the Committee noted
that that area of Japanese studies needs careful review.
Understanding through appreciation
of society and culture
9.19
A number of witnesses stressed that while
language provides a solid base it alone is not sufficient to provide the level
of understanding needed to comprehend fully the way a society works. Professor Coaldrake
made the point that the very foundation of an enduring relationship rests on
understanding and communication, which in turn depends upon speaking a language
of mutual comprehension, not just each other’s language, but also understanding
society, culture and history. The idea of trust and partnership has great
meaning for the Japanese so the level of understanding of its society and
culture is particularly important. Professor Coaldrake argues that the
disciplines of the social sciences and humanities will equip Australia best in
the long term, along with strategic investment in science, technology,
economics and political science, to analyse and anticipate trends in Japan.[18] But according to him this
vital area of study is being neglected and he could see a serious problem in
the making. He told the Committee:
Efforts at governmental and university levels to respond to the
surge in demand for Japanese language teaching in the mid-1980s addressed the
crisis in language but the concentration of resources on language turned the
medium into the message. It diverted resources away from teaching and research
in the humanities and social sciences and caused a drop in academic staffing in
Japanese studies.[19]
9.20
This trend away from the social sciences
disturbed him. He pointed out that ‘the implications of these indicators for
the next generation in terms of our ability to position ourselves to understand
Japan, are, quite frankly, frightening’. He stated that there were now
insufficient new researchers entering the fields even to achieve replacement of
the present inadequate numbers when the current generation of academics in the
humanities and social sciences in Japanese studies moves on in 15, 20 or so
years. He predicted that:
The next 15 years will be spent in increasing intellectual
isolation for Australia as momentum is lost. Australia’s capacity to anticipate
and analyse is crumbling.[20]
9.21
The Japan Foundation Language Centre was also
concerned that the study of Japanese culture was being neglected by Japanese
language students. Put bluntly, Mr Katsumi Kakazu from the Japan Foundation
Sydney Language Centre, stated: ‘...it is very important to learn language to
communicate smoothly, but the other most important thing is to learn the
culture of a country’. He pointed out that Japanese language and Japanese
studies should be integrated because the language is inseparable from the
culture and suggested that Australia must focus on a combination of study and
research of some of the other aspects of the culture of the Japanese people.[21]
9.22
Dr George Mulgan endorsed these views on the
significance of Japanese studies and supported other witnesses who were not
happy with the level of knowledge and skill in Australia needed to monitor and
assess accurately developments in Japan. She stressed the importance of having
Japanese language if Australians want to have the quality of expertise
necessary to engage effectively with the Japanese. But she went further to
emphasise that a lifetime commitment is required to obtain that level of
knowledge and understanding which calls for a strong involvement in Japanese
studies as well. In considering tertiary institutions, she stated that the
right balance was needed between strong Japanese language programs and strong
Japanese studies programs. Moreover, that a greater degree of flexibility and
encouragement was needed to allow ‘some of the academic experts and scholars
who work on Japan in Australian universities to go into the bureaucracy, to be
seconded in and move back and forth’.[22]
9.23
In particular, she felt that more expertise is
needed within the Australian bureaucracy. She argued:
We certainly need a greater expertise in the agricultural
bureaucracy to understand the nature of the farm lobby in Japan, that politics
dictates agricultural policy in Japan.
...
The main problem with people in bureaucratic positions is that
they are working very much to immediate issues and immediate questions that
have to be dealt with. They do not have a chart; they do not have an
opportunity to sit back and do some sort of more reflective work that can take
place in academia.[23]
9.24
Professor Coaldrake also drew attention to the
inadequacy of combined degrees to equip graduates with the high level skills
needed to successfully represent Australia’s business interests in Japan. He
argued that the requirements of combined degrees load the curriculum so that
students are only able to achieve an elementary level of language and are not
able to proceed beyond that standard to the really professional levels needed.
He submitted:
...by creating combined degrees we have sent the signal of the
Asian El Dorado. If you combine say, Japanese with economics you can write your
own ticket...students do not pursue discipline studies on Japan. They pursue
language and then they pursue economics but they do not necessarily combine the
two very closely. The result is that we are losing out on both. We are losing
out on the language and we are losing out on the disciplines.[24]
9.25
Professor Yoshio Sugimoto was equally concerned
about the failure of Japanese language students to combine effectively their
language skill with another discipline. He acknowledged that the Japanese
language programs had grown in number and quality over the last several years.
He was critical, however, that those who had mastered the Japanese language at
a semi-native level remained few and many Japanese language students in
Australian universities complete their language course without obtaining
another discipline based on professional training. He told the Committee:
...Japanese language programs have produced quite a lot of
students with basic proficiency. They may satisfy some demand of the
hospitality industry but, for long-term Australia-Japan relations, we need a
lot more sophisticated language users among business and labour leaders as well
as among technocrats and professionals. It seems to me that a numerical
expansion of elementary Japanese language users has not been accompanied by the
expansion of the number of Japan specialists equipped with both professional
skills and top level Japanese language competency.[25]
9.26
In other words, those who are capable of
speaking the Japanese language after studying Japanese language courses in
tertiary institutions are simply language specialists who do not have any other
professional skills such as degrees in law, business administration or
engineering. According to Professor Sugimoto, such graduates can cater for the
low end of the hospitality industry and the tourism industry. On the other
hand, those who have studied Japanese business, politics, society and so on may
be intellectually quite well equipped in acquiring the knowledge of Japan, but
they are not good language users. He recommended that some way be found to
ensure that professionally oriented students who seek degrees and
qualifications in professional areas can be trained to a higher level of
language skills. He submitted:
If Australia can produce not necessarily a large number of
experts but a small number of technocrats, business people and labour leaders
who can cope with these two dimensions at a very high level of expertise, then
we would be somewhere in handling Australia-Japan relations in a very efficient
and outstanding way. [26]
9.27
Mr Leon Wolff, argued that the groundwork that
has been done with language is going to help Australians now but he also
acknowledged that this is only the beginning. He followed the same argument as
Dr Mulgan who highlighted the advantages to be gained by deepening the
knowledge and understanding of Japan through a greater exchange of Japanese
experts between various sectors of the community. He told the Committee:
If we want more Australians to really penetrate Japan, become
critically engaged with Japan and understand and even predict the issues in
Japan, we need to combine both the real world experience where they get the
skills—where they know how to trade or they know comparative advantage—with
them coming back to research. How things work economically in Australia with
our distribution system is not necessarily going to translate with the same
results in Japan, which has a different system. If they think about that, they
will be better equipped to help Australia in the future.[27]
9.28
Thus, despite successful efforts to encourage
Australian students to pursue studies in the Japanese language, Australia is
yet to go that step further and produce graduates who are able to combine
language skills with expertise in another discipline such as politics, law,
economics, or engineering. According to Professor Drysdale, ‘Australia has made
quite a substantial investment in training young people to do business with
Japan, but the reality is that the scale and structure of knowledge required
are still inadequate to the task’. [28]
9.29
The Committee agrees that Australia needs to
preserve and improve its institutional links with Japan and to work hard at
developing contacts between Australians and Japanese at all levels from the
official through to the community. But to acquire the high level skills
necessary to assess and forecast trends in Japan, Australia needs to make a
serious commitment over many years to train Australian specialists to a
standard that will fully equip them to provide sound advice and to make
decisions regarding commercial undertakings in Japan. These researchers need to
develop an intimate first-hand knowledge of the domestic socio-political
framework in which trade policies are developed. They need to understand the
socio-political realities that constrain the trade policies of Japan to be able
either to advise on or to negotiate market agreements.[29]A real understanding of the
sensitivities of operating in Japan is needed to underpin the development and
formulation of strategies that will minimise the risk of unfavourable trade
policy changes. Such an understanding will allow and encourage Australians to
take full advantage of opportunities as they arise in Japan.
9.30
The Committee acknowledges and commends the
great strides that have been made to encourage the study of Japanese language
in Australia. It accepts, however, that more could be done to encourage
students to study the language at the tertiary level and to combine this
discipline with Japanese studies and with other disciplines.
Recommendation
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government
introduce incentive schemes, such as scholarships, to encourage tertiary
students to undertake the study of Japanese language combined with Japanese
studies.
The Committee also recommends that the Australian Government
offer incentive schemes to encourage graduates with Japanese language
qualifications to undertake study in another discipline or graduates trained in
disciplines such as economics, science or law to undertake Japanese language
and studies.
9.31
The Committee takes note of the importance in
investing in the long-term and on-going development and training of Japanese
experts in Australia. It recognises the importance in providing opportunities
for specialists in Japanese language and Japanese studies to move with greater
flexibility among business organisations, public service and research
institutions in Australia and to participate in exchange programs with
counterparts in Japan.
Recommendation
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government
adopt a policy that clearly encourages and facilitates the exchange of
academics, business people and public servants with expertise or experience in
Japan among business organisations, public service and research institutions in
Australia and between counterparts in Australia and Japan.
Role of government
9.32
The Australian Government has an active and
positive role in encouraging trading links with Japan. There is a need for
government officials to understand the changes in Japan so they can anticipate
and forecast trends to assist exporters in taking advantage of these changes,
especially in negotiating market agreements.
9.33
The Committee has detailed in Chapters 6 and 7,
the Australian Government’s involvement in fostering a close partnership in
which commercial life can flourish between the two countries. It has noted the
steps taken by the Australian Government to facilitate trade with Japan, such
as its contribution to Japan’s Deregulation Program and the appointment of
specialists to Japan to assist in quarantine matters as well its work at the
regional level as a member of APEC.
9.34
This involvement is concerned with removing
specific obstacles to trade. The government also has a vital role to ensure
that Australian producers are well placed to take advantage of opportunities
arising in the Japanese marketplace; to be involved in directly supporting and
assisting Australian exporters in their endeavours to gain access to the
Japanese market.
9.35
In Chapter 7, the Committee underlined one of
the strongest messages coming out of the inquiry—the importance for Australian
exporters to know their customers, to be fully informed about developments in
the Japanese markets and to be aware of future trends. Many witnesses before
the Committee believed that the Australian Government could be a catalyst not
only in maintaining information flows but in motivating Australian producers to
trade with Japan and in facilitating such trade ventures.[30]
9.36
Austrade accepts responsibility for being the
catalyst for encouraging companies to trade with Japan. Its objective is to
convey current and accurate information about developments in the Japanese
economy to Australian exporters as quickly as possible; to help exporters
establish more direct lines with customers rather than using intermediaries; to
keep them informed about their product in the marketplace and the consequences
of any change that is taking place there; and to assist and encourage direct
investment in Japan. It supports Australian exporters with their work in
regional areas and overall acts as a consultant and adviser to Australian
companies doing business with Japanese investments and Japanese companies
elsewhere in Asia.[31]
9.37
Mr Dodds told the Committee that, together with
the Australian Embassy in Japan, Austrade could help companies seeking to
improve their profile in Japan because they have considerable access to the
Japanese Government and Japanese industry circles.[32]
9.38
Austrade is supported in its work with
Australian export companies by other Australian and State Government departments.
For example, the Department of Industry, Science and Resources has a resource
counsellor attached to the Tokyo Embassy, whose role includes monitoring
developments in the energy debate. The counsellor also works closely with the
representatives of Australian resources companies in Tokyo, so there is both
private and public sector examination of developments in Japan to assess their
significance, particularly on demand for resources.[33] In the Department’s view:
... there is a very wide range of information available about the
situation in Japan—economic, political and social. There is a range of
mechanisms, in our department alone, for regular dialogue and consultation with
the Japanese on a whole raft of areas. We facilitate high level contacts
between businessmen in the two countries and that is complemented by the
activities of departments like Foreign Affairs and Trade, which also feed into
the information networks available to the government and to business in
Australia. I would have thought that Japan would be one of the countries that
we almost know the most about in terms of their future trends. [34]
9.39
The Department also felt confident that the
Australian Government and businesses draw on a long history of cooperation with
Japan and have proven experience in analysing information coming out of Japan.[35]
9.40
There is the concern, however, that with a
number of Australian Government departments and State Governments working to
promote and facilitate trade with Japan their work may unnecessarily overlap.
The New South Wales Department of State and Regional Development, however, made
clear that Austrade complements and does not duplicate the work that they do in
promoting trade in Japan.[36]
A performance audit by the Auditor-General more generally found that coordination
between the Commonwealth and States dealing with export development and
promotion services to Australian enterprises is working well but there is room
for improvement. In turning to cooperation between Commonwealth agencies it
concluded that ‘while there was little evidence of the duplication of
activities by Commonwealth agencies, weaknesses in coordination present the
risk of this occurring’.[37]
9.41
Clearly, Austrade provides services that
Australian exporters value. Mr Pokarier noted its move to give greater emphasis
to cost recovery for detailed services to Australian firms and acknowledged
that this promotes a better allocation of resources and provides incentive for
Austrade to develop competencies through serving a paying clientele. He raised
concern, however, that much of the market intelligence gathering is still
driven by a ‘grab bag’ of inquiries that are passed onto the Japanese offices
by Australia-based staff. He would like to see the Japanese operations given
sufficient resources and discretion ‘to explore market opportunities, which
having the support of an Australia-based operation...adequately filters inquiries
and disseminates new intelligence from Japan to potential as well as existing
Australian clients.’[38]
9.42
One of the problems pointed out by Mr Pokarier
is that those Austrade officials who are designated as consuls, carry an
enormous responsibility and expectations that go beyond their primary role as
trade promoters. He explained that the Japanese understanding of a diplomatic
official is one that is quite separate from trade. To meet Japanese
expectations, he suggested that the consuls need to have better resources.
We have to allow the consul to do the consular kind of
activities and we have to give them more support to also do the trade promotion
roles.[39]
9.43
He submitted further:
It is not surprising that various Japanese organisations will
approach the consulates seeking to have the consul carry out various ceremonial
functions. School ceremonies are but one example. Such situations may be a great
distraction from the task of trade promotion but nonetheless provide an
opportunity to foster considerable goodwill between the two nations that might
even have some economic pay-offs in the long term. If adequate support is not
forthcoming for the consuls to be able to carry out those roles then the
Australian Government should investigate the question of designating them
simply Trade Representative, although it is recognised that this raises a range
of protocol and other issues.[40]
9.44
Austrade has a central role in promoting trade
between Australia and Japan. It is aware of its responsibility to keep
Australian business fully aware of developments in Japan. Mr Richard Pomfret,
however, pointed out that although Austrade provides services that exporters
value, there is a difficulty in assessing the extent to which its activities
actually promote exports.[41]
9.45
It is often difficult to measure or quantify the
contribution that Austrade makes to trade flows between the two countries. In
some cases, Austrade’s contribution might have been decisive in securing a
contract but in others, it might have just facilitated what was always likely
to have been a successful outcome.
9.46
There is also the question of whether Austrade
is delivering the best possible results for exporters. According to Austrade’s
1998-99 Annual Report, based on an external survey of 2,500 clients, it
received a client satisfaction rating of 79.5%. Of those surveyed, 6.5%
regarded Austrade’s performance as poor or very poor and 14% were either neutral
or did not know.
9.47
As the government agency responsible for
promoting and facilitating trade with Japan (and all other overseas markets),
Austrade needs to ensure that it is doing everything possible to help
Australian companies take advantage of all the opportunities for trade and
investment that arise from the rapid economic and social change taking place in
Japan. As a result, the Committee believes that Austrade should regularly
reassess its performance in relation to Japan, in consultation with the Australian
business community. When reassessing performance, it should include the
following:
- the availability and dissemination of market
intelligence;
- the assistance provided to SMEs and whether this
takes account of the particular difficulties they experience in securing and
maintaining a presence in Japan;
- the level of resources devoted to the Japanese
market;
- the opportunities that Austrade has to initiate
inquiries rather than respond to requests, keeping in mind potential exporters;
and
- the duties expected of Austrade officers in
Japan, including the mix of consular activities and trade promotion.
Role of business
Australia’s business presence in
the region
9.48
One of the main lessons to draw from the
evidence presented to the Committee is that there are opportunities waiting to
be taken up in Japan but that the onus is ultimately on Australian producers to
accept the challenge. This is not to downplay the important responsibility of
the Australian Government and its agencies such as Austrade and organisations
such as JETRO to predict trends, identify and inform Australians about
opportunities and to encourage and finally assist Australian business to make a
start in Japan and to maintain their presence there. Government has the
important responsibility to listen to Australian business and to help them by
clearing away obstacles to trade through negotiated access agreements or
similar understandings with Japan. Government also has the responsibility to
create within Australia an environment that will assist Australian producers
improve their international competitiveness. Ultimately, however, Australian
business must set their own course.
9.49
This report has stressed the importance of
having a clear understanding of the Japanese consumer, the Japanese business
environment, and developments underway in Japan, especially the reform process.
The Committee again underlines the message that Australian exporters need to be
acutely aware of the changes in the Japanese business world and consumption
trends. They need to be able to identify opportunities as they start to emerge
in order to promote their interests and reap new rewards. Evidence presented to
the Committee, however, shows that Australian producers are not taking full
advantage of available resources to acquire the knowledge and expertise needed
to effectively exploit the opportunities existing and opening up in Japan.
9.50
JETRO informed the Committee that Australia’s
performance in using its facilities shows that a gap still exists compared to
other countries. It cited Australia’s poor interest in the import housing
materials exhibition centre as an example of the low level of Australian
representation in such promotional schemes. There were only four Australian
companies out of a total overseas representation of 544 companies that have
exhibited since the centre’s inception. Australia’s representation was dwarfed
by New Zealand’s 16 companies.[42]
9.51
JETRO also referred to its Technology Tie-up
Program, which encourages linkages between companies in Japan and overseas in a
range of technical fields such as biotechnology, environment technologies and
medicine. Canada recorded 111 requests compared to Australia’s 17. JETRO
suggested that Australian companies may well be hindered in their thinking by
perceptions based on past experiences and a limited view of Japan as a
low-growth economy. As an indication of this short-term thinking, JETRO has
experienced a decline in the number of trade inquiries compared with the
situation before the economic crunch. JETRO told the Committee that, through
information dissemination, seminars and also through invitations to business
people to participate in their various programs, they are trying to erase the
notion that Japan offers little promise for business at the moment.[43] Austrade was also at pains to
point out that despite talk about Japan’s slow-growth economy there are
significant areas where consumer demand in Japan is very strong and building.[44]
9.52
Another resource that Australian companies are
slow to tap is Japanese language experts. According to Professor Rix, some
companies have skilled personnel who can deal with Japan linguistically as well
as in a professional capacity, such as Australian mainstream commercial
exporters as well as the legal fraternity, the accounting and engineering professions.
On the other hand, he pointed out that there are companies dealing with Japan
which need more help, who dismiss the importance of speaking Japanese in favour
of people who understand the business. He told the Committee that part of the
problem is that:
...the Australian private sector still is not as multilingual as
it should be. We are still basically going overseas and relying on our own
language to get us through. We cannot do that in a complicated market like
Japan, which is now looking inward and where we have to fight much harder for
market share. That is fundamentally the problem...Within the government you can
find people with a strong Japan background and language skills, or if you
haven’t got those you can get them easily. But in the private sector it is much
more difficult.[45]
9.53
He stressed the point that a number of companies
still take the view that the Japanese speak English and so it is not an issue.
But he emphasised that Australian exporters must do much more at the micro
level; that they must deal with the Japanese market on its own terms and not
assume that they will do anything to assist exporters.[46]
9.54
Mr Larry Crump, who has lived and worked in
Japan as a management and training consultant, went further and suggested that
Australian exporters need a class of experts that he called
‘Australian-Japanese protocol consultants’. He envisaged a defined position
within a relevant organisation whose responsibilities would be to serve as an
adviser and consultant to people who are trying to create and enhance
organisational relationships with their counterpart in Japan.[47]
9.55
It would seem that one of the underlying
difficulties in motivating Australian companies to explore the prospect of
trading with Japan stems from their lack of confidence in tackling what they
perceive as a difficult place to do business—that Japan is ‘too hard’.[48] To repeat, Mr Dodd’s words—the
Japanese market has ‘most people spooked’.[49]
In part, this perception rests on a lack of understanding of Japan and its
market place. As the Committee noted earlier, the Australian Government has a
vital role in promoting and facilitating trade with Japan but that the decision
to trade with Japan rests inevitably with business.
9.56
The Committee believes, however, that the
Government may need to step up its efforts to educate and further encourage
Australian business to consider Japan as a viable market. The recommendations
put forward by this Committee should go some way to achieving this end.
John Hogg
Chairman
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