Koji Omi | |
|---|---|
 Omi with Martín Varsavsky at STS in Kyoto | |
| Minister of Finance | |
| In office 26 September 2006 – 27 August 2007 | |
| Prime Minister | Shinzō Abe |
| Preceded by | Sadakazu Tanigaki |
| Succeeded by | Fukushiro Nukaga |
| Head of the Economic Planning Agency | |
| In office 1997–1998 | |
| Prime Minister | Ryutaro Hashimoto |
| Preceded by | Taro Aso |
| Succeeded by | Taichi Sakaiya |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 14 December 1932 Numata, Gunma, Japan |
| Died | 14 April 2022 (aged 89) |
| Political party | Liberal Democratic Party |
| Alma mater | Hitotsubashi University |
Kōji Omi (尾身 幸次, Omi Kōji, 14 December 1932 – 14 April 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Minister of Finance in the first Cabinet of Shinzō Abe, from 2001 to 2007.
Omi was born in Numata, Gunma Prefecture and graduated with a degree in Commerce from Hitotsubashi University. He joined the Ministry of International Trade and Industry and later served as consul general of Japan in New York City and as Director of the Small Business Administration. He resigned from the bureaucracy in 1982 to run for office, and was elected to the Diet of Japan in 1983.
Omi was appointed Director of the Economic Planning Agency in 1997 and briefly as a state minister under Junichiro Koizumi in 2001. He was on a mission to the United States during the September 11, 2001 attacks. He was Minister of Science and Technology 2001–2002, as well as Minister of State for Okinawa and Northern Territories Affairs.[1] He was appointed Minister of Finance on 26 September 2006.He was conferred an Honorary Doctorate in Public Service by the University of Cambodia in 2007[2] and by the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology in 2018.[3]
Omi supported increases in the national consumption tax, although Abe distanced himself from this policy and sought to achieve much of his budget balancing through spending cuts.[4] Omi died on 14 April 2022, at the age of 89.[5]
Later work
Founder and Chairman, Science and Technology in Society Forum[6] Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology board member from 2014 to 2021.[7]
References
- ↑ "Remembering a Visionary: Koji Omi Connected Okinawa with Science and Technology". oist.jp. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
- ↑ "Welcome to The University of Cambodia (UC)". uc.edu.kh. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
- ↑ "14 Students Awarded PHD at OIST First Graduation Ceremony".
- ↑ Japan's Abe Unexpectedly Names Omi Finance Minister, Bloomberg.com, 26 September 2006.
- ↑ "Remembering a Visionary: Koji Omi Connected Okinawa with Science and Technology". oist.jp. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
- ↑ Omi, Koji (22 December 2014). "Constructing a Global Science Forum". Science & Diplomacy. 3 (4). Retrieved 18 June 2015.
- ↑ "Remembering a Visionary: Koji Omi Connected Okinawa with Science and Technology". oist.jp. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
