ABSTRACT
This chapter will take up the question of whether the Heisei Municipal Mergers, completed by the legal deadline of March 31, 2006, have fostered sustainable regional revitalization or resulted instead in increased inequality and loss of local identity. While numerically, the number of municipalities was decreased and efficiency in governance and administration largely achieved, specific questions regarding long-term services provision and infrastructural equality have raised questions about the impact of the mergers at levels both regional and national. Furthermore, a broad conceptualization of revitalization demands consideration of the social as well as the economic, in particular in terms of local identity, place consciousness and civic participation on the part of local residents in response to the changes that the mergers have brought for outlying areas. The chapter will use post-merger municipality reports from throughout Japan together with research reports and media coverage to assess the ongoing outcomes of the mergers.
