｡?ccording to OECD statistics on national economies, Japanese local finance amounts to 14.1% of GDP. Local finance occupies an important position, accounting for 80% of general government expenditure excluding social welfare funds, which is comparable to that of federal governments such as Canada and Germany.
｡?hereas public capital formation represents a high share of the Japanese economy at 8.0% (National 1.3%; Local 6.7%), local authorities provide a 6.7% share which is equivalent to about 80% of public capital formation. Local finance plays an important role in providing social overhead capital in conformance with the 'Basic plan for public investment' which is an international commitment.
