TOKYO: A GLOBAL CITY IN A FASCINATING LAND OF CONTRADICTIONS

GLOBAL CITY: DEFINITION

A global city, also called world city or sometimes alpha city or world center, is a city which is a
primary node in the global economic network. The concept comes from geography and urban studies, and
the idea that globalization is created, facilitated, and enacted in strategic geographic locales according to a
hierarchy of importance to the operation of the global system of finance and trade.

GLOBAL CITY: CHARACTERISTICS( RECOGNITION CRITERIA)

Although criteria are variable and fluid, typical characteristics of world cities are:
 A variety of international financial services, notably in finance, insurance, real
estate, banking, accountancy, and marketing
 Headquarters of several multinational corporations
 The existence of financial headquarters, a stock exchange, and major financial institutions
 Domination of the trade and economy of a large surrounding area
 Major manufacturing centres with port and container facilities
 Considerable decision-making power on a daily basis and at a global level
 Centres of new ideas and innovation in business, economics, culture, and politics
 Centres of media and communications for global networks
 Dominance of the national region with great international significance
 High percentage of residents employed in the services sector and information sector
 High-quality educational institutions, including renowned universities, international student
attendance, and research facilities
 Multi-functional infrastructure offering some of the best legal, medical, and entertainment
facilities in the country
 High diversity in language, culture, religion, and ideologies.

JAPAN: LAND OF CONTRADICTIONS

It is often said Japan is a land of contradictions, a society where the reality on the ground is
substantially different from the facade presented to the outside world, and unique factor in
Japan is the juxtaposition of its fundamental rooting in tradition versus the most outrageous
modern thinking and behavior.
Japanese are often called Ultra-modern traditionalists
TOKYO: CITY PROFILE
A. ETYMOLOGY AND HISTORY

The history of the city of Tokyo stretches back some 400 years. Originally named Edo, the
city started to flourish under Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1603.

In 1868, the Meiji Restoration the Emperor renamed the city to Tokyo which means “
EASTERN CAPITAL”, hence the capital of Japan.

1980s, Tokyo took large steps in economic growth as a result of its increasingly global
economic activity and the emergence of the information society.

B. DEMOGRAPHICS
POPULATION

know the population of Tokyo in the year 2019, the population of the last 5 years has to
be checked. They are as follows.

1. 2014 – 13 Million
2. 2015 – 13.2 Million
3. 2016 – 13.6 Million
4. 2017 – 13.76 Million
5. 2018 – 13.932 Million

Tokyo Population 2019 – 14.1184 Million (estimated).

GREATER TOKYO AREA- 37,435,191

REGISTERED FOREIGN NATIONALS

As many as 2.4 million foreigners living in Japan were mid- and long-term residents.

Moreover, of the total number of foreign residents, 20.8 percent were concentrated in and
around the Tokyo area.

HEALTH CARE- MEDICAL SERVICES

Every Tokyo neighbourhood has at least one primary care clinic. Called naika (内科)

Common pharmacy chains include Matsumoto Kiyoshi (マツモトキヨシ), Tomod's (トモ

ズ) and Tsuruha Drug (ツルハドラッグ). Almost every train station will have one
nearby. Neighbourhood pharmacies are generally open 10am to 9pm but you can find
24-hour ones in big hubs like Shinjuku and Shibuya.

Pharmacies in Japan carry very few recognisable foreign brands (Tylenol, a brand of
paracetamol, is an exception).

Pharmacies are also the place to pick up condoms, pregnancy tests, feminine hygiene
products and nappies.

C. ECONOMIC PROFILE

Gross Domestic Product

The area has the largest metropolitan economy in the world, with a total
GDP (nominal) of approximately $2 trillion (¥165 trillion) in 2008. According to
research published by PricewaterhouseCoopers, the agglomeration of Tokyo
had a total GDP of $1.5 trillion in 2008 (at purchasing power parity), ranking
again as the largest urban agglomeration GDP in the world.

Industry Sectors
In terms of Tokyo's national share by industry, the "Information and
Communications Industry" holds the top spot at 34.1%. Next in line are the
"Academic Research, Professional, and Technical Service Industry" with
18.8% and the "Real Estate and Leasing Industry" with 16.1%.

Furthermore, with its concentration of financial institutions, Tokyo can

be considered a suitable environment for companies' economic activities.

TOURISM SECTOR
In 2006 contributed 9.4 Trillion Yen to the economy with 4.81 Million Foreign
Tourists and 420 Million Japanese Visits
 Tokyo has set a goal of having 15 million foreign tourists by 2020 , taking advantage
of the great opportunity provided by Tokyo’s hosting of the 2020 Olympic and
Paralympic Games.

TRANSPORTATION

Tokyo has world-class transportation and distribution networks consisting of land, sea, and air
routes. With the ongoing development of Three Ring Roads, a scheduled increase in the number of
international flights at Tokyo International Airport (Haneda Airport), and increased cooperation
among Tokyo Port, Yokohama Port, and Kawasaki Port, Tokyo's transport infrastructure system will
see significant improvements.

D. SOCIETY AND GOVERNANCE

RATE OF CRIMINALITY

Crime rates in Tokyo, Japan

Level of crime 14.50 Very Low

Crime increasing in the past 3 years 35.59 Low

Worries home broken and things stolen 14.91 Very Low

Worries being mugged or robbed 14.56 Very Low

Worries car stolen 12.76 Very Low

Worries things from car stolen 13.41 Very Low

Worries attacked 16.47 Very Low

Worries being insulted 19.86 Very Low

Worries being subject to a physical attack because of your skin colour, ethnic origin or religion 16.99 Very Low

Problem people using or dealing drugs 16.82 Very Low

Problem property crimes such as vandalism and theft 16.89 Very Low

Problem violent crimes such as assault and armed robbery 15.03 Very Low

Problem corruption and bribery 19.85 Very Low

Safety in Tokyo, Japan

Safety walking alone during daylight 87.09 Very High

Safety walking alone during night 83.18 Very High

 Culture and Language

The most widely spoken language in Japan is Japanese, which is separated into a large number of
dialects with Tokyo dialect considered standard Japanese.
Religion & Beliefs:
Shinto and Buddhism 84%, other 16% (including Christian 0.7%)
Shinto dates back to ancient times when people believed that the natural world possessed Kami, a
Shinto deity or divine spirit. Buddhism came from China in the 6th Century and the two religions
have co-existed in Japan from that time.
 City Government
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government is the government of the Tokyo Metropolis, one of the 47
prefectures of Japan. The government consists of a popularly elected governor and assembly. The
headquarters building is located in the ward of Shinjuku.
The metropolitan government administers the 23 Special Wards of Tokyo (each governed as an
individual city), as well as the other cities and towns that constitute the prefecture. With a
population closing in on 14 million living within its boundaries, and many more commuting from
neighboring prefectures, the metropolitan government wields significant political power within
Japan.

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Founder member of the Asian Network of Major Cities 21
Member of the Council of Local Authorities for International Relations and C40 Cities
Climate Leadership Group

Sister Cities:
New York
Beijing
Paris
Seoul
Sydney

E.EDUCATION
Webometrics ranks University of Tokyo as first in Asia for quantity and quality of web
publication, and Keio seventh.
Within Tokyo, the relative degree of difficulty of entrance to particular "Faculties" (gakubu, also
called "Schools") or even their component Departments is of some interest. Yoyogi Seminar, a
large cram school company, publishes lists of gakubu arranged by difficulty. For faculties of law,
economics, business and commerce of public universities, the most demanding in or for 2010
was Hitotsubashi University's faculty of law, followed by faculties of the University of
Tokyo; for these subjects at private universities, four faculties of Keio and two of Waseda
outclassed their closest rivals (at Sophia and Chuo); for faculties of humanities, education,
languages and social studies of public universities, Tokyo, the Tokyo University of Foreign
Studies, Hitotsubashi, and Ochanomizu were particularly demanding; for the same at private
universities, two faculties of Keio, four of Waseda, one of Sophia and one of Hoseioccupied the
top two ranks.
F. ENVIRONMENT
Tokyo has many environmental issues ranging from the heat island effect to air
pollution. Environmental storms are even an environmental issue. The heat island
effect is when the city gets heated up due to everyday activities. Air pollution is
caused by automobiles and the lack of consideration to control this. Tokyo has
many major environmental issues that need to be take care of before things get
worst.

TOKYO: AS A GLOBAL CITY