PIC Advises on Digital Garden City Nation Initiative

The Policy Innovation Consortium (PIC) has been appointed as a strategic advisor to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) for the expansion of the Digital Garden City Nation Initiative, a flagship program aimed at revitalizing rural areas through digital transformation.

The initiative, launched in 2022, seeks to address Japan's urban-rural divide by bringing advanced digital infrastructure and services to non-metropolitan areas. PIC will provide policy guidance on three critical aspects of the program:

• Regulatory Sandboxes: Designing special regulatory zones in rural communities where innovative digital services can be tested with modified compliance requirements.
• Public-Private Data Sharing: Creating frameworks for secure and ethical sharing of data between government agencies, private companies, and community organizations.
• Digital Skills Development: Establishing localized training programs to ensure rural residents can fully participate in and benefit from digital transformation.

"Rural revitalization requires more than just physical infrastructure—it demands thoughtful policy design that addresses the unique social and economic contexts of each community," said Masataka Ito, PIC's Industry Liaison. "Our role is to ensure that technology deployment is accompanied by appropriate governance frameworks."

The collaboration will initially focus on six model communities selected from different regions of Japan, representing diverse challenges from remote mountainous villages to declining coastal towns. These communities will serve as testing grounds for policy innovations before wider implementation.

A key aspect of PIC's advisory role will be facilitating knowledge transfer between Japanese rural communities and international counterparts that have successfully implemented digital transformation strategies, including examples from Northern Europe and rural South Korea.

The first phase of policy recommendations is expected to be delivered to the MIC by August 2025, with implementation support continuing through 2027.

"The Digital Garden City Nation Initiative represents Japan's commitment to ensuring that technological advancement benefits all citizens, regardless of where they live," said Minister Tanaka of the MIC. "PIC's expertise in policy innovation will help us achieve this vision more effectively."