His Excellency Iwata Kazuchika

Mr. IWATA Kazuchika was appointed State Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry on September 15, 2023. In this key role, Mr. Iwata’s primary responsibility will be overseeing METI’s ongoing efforts to support the revitalization of Fukushima, and to promote the region’s Green Transformation.

Mr. Iwata joins METI from the House of Representatives, the lower house of Japan’s National Diet where he has represented constituents in the Kyushu region for more than a decade. In 2022, he served as Chairperson of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Economy, Trade and Industry Subcommittee. While in 2021, Mr. Iwata served as Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry at METI.

Before his appointments at METI, Mr. Iwata served on senior posts in the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) including Chairperson, of Committee on Organizations Involved with Commerce, Industry and Medium and Small Sized Enterprises as well as Deputy Director, Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Division. In 2019, he was appointed Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Defense.

Earlier in his career as a publicly elected official, Mr. Iwata served as a member of the Saga Prefectural Assembly.

Prior to seeking national elected office, Mr. Iwata worked as a management consultant at the Ohmae & Associates Group.

Mr. Iwata is a graduate of Kyushu University’s Faculty of Law. He was born on September 20,1973 in Saga Prefecture in the Kyushu region of southern Japan.