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Japan Loses Its Spot as World's Third-Largest Economy as It Slips Into Recession
(www.bloomberg.com)
this post was submitted on 15 Feb 2024
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I lived in Japan and there are aspects where it is ahead but other aspects where it is stuck in 1970s with its processes and bureaucracy. For example in Saudi Arabia you can renew your passport and get a simcard without leaving the house and promptly. Last time I did my passport was delivered within 3 days and the simcard within 2 hours. In Japan getting my drivers license required multiple visits to various government offices and lots of paperwork. Similarly for getting a simcard, except for visiting the government offices part. Japan does have a significantly better infrastructure and more advanced and punctual mass transit system though.
It's...getting better, albeit very very slowly like everything else here. I think the pandemic helped push things a bit. A lot more services are available online than they used to be. For example visa renewals you can actually do online now, though it requires you purchase some extra hardware for your PC that you probably don't have lying around (like an IC card reader).