Annuity Markets in Japan

In Japan, annuities are not currently very popular as a means to finance retirement, since many people rely on government social security benefits in old age. When annuities are sold, they tend not to be life payouts but rather term-certain products. In this sense, the annuity puzzle also applies to Japan. We discuss possible reasons for the unpopularity of annuity products, including costs and inequitable taxation that hinders people from buying them

Unifying Pension Schemes in Japan: Toward a Single Scheme for Both Civil Servants and Private Employees

A topic of long-standing discussion in Japan has been how to equitably merge the retirement plans for civil servants and private employees, which in the past have been managed separately. Recent legislation sought to unify social security pension schemes for all employees, by extending the coverage of the Japanese Employees’ Pension Insurance Scheme which covers private employees to include civil servants as well. We describe how Japanese social security pension schemes have evolved, the forces driving the merger of these plans, and what future prospects may be

Japan's pension reform

Rapid population ageing has led to repeated adjustments to the parameters of Japan's public pension scheme over the last decade, all aimed at achieving long run financial balance. The most recent attempt, describe in this paper, introduces an adjustment mechanism that links future benefit levels to the underlying determinants of the scheme's finances. This mechanism is similar to those recently introduced in Germany and, to a lesser extent, in Sweden, and fundamentally alters the concept of the'defined benefit'. Changes to how pension reserves are invested are also described. Finally, the benefit reductions in the public scheme and recent regulatory changes suggest an increased future role for complementary private provision.Economic Theory&Research,Pensions&Retirement Systems,Technology Industry,State Owned Enterprise Reform,Demographics

分子生物学的手法によるPPAR活性化薬の性状解析

筑波大学 (University of Tsukuba)201

分子生物学的手法によるPPAR活性化薬の性状解析

筑波大学 (University of Tsukuba)201

Knowledge, attitudes and practices towards avian influenza A (H5N1) among Cambodian women: A cross–sectional study

AbstractObjectiveTo measure highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI)-related knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAPs) among Cambodian women.MethodsThis cross-sectional study selected 246 married women aged between 18–55 years who had backyard poultry and lived at least one year in the areas of the survey through multi-stage cluster sampling. An average score of correct answers was generated to evaluate respondents' knowledge (Good/Poor), attitudes (Positive/Negative), and practices (Good/Bad).ResultsWe reported that about half of the respondents had good knowledge and good practices and four-fifth of them had positive attitudes towards HPAI. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated through a logistic regression model to explore contributing factors that raise their KAP levels. Most of the sources were significant in increasing knowledge of the respondent, like television (OR=1.6, 95% CI=1.0–2.7), radio (OR=2.5, 95% CI=1.3–4.9), leaflets/booklets (OR=2.1, 95% CI=1.2–3.9), school students (OR=18.4, 95% CI=2.4–142.9), village health volunteers (OR=4.5, 95% CI=2.2–10.9) etc. Factors such as television (OR=3.7, 95% CI=2.1–6.4), leaflets/booklets (OR=2.6, 95% CI=1.4–5.1), and public health staff (OR=2.2, 95% CI=1.2–4.1) had similar influence on practices. Although, we found similar effect on raising the attitudes of the responded, it was not significant.ConclusionsWe report a satisfactory level of positive attitudes, and moderate level of knowledge and practices related to HPAI among Cambodian women. Raising KAPs through television, radio and other medias may be more efficient than using usual information, education and communication materials to prevent HPAI