Modernization

Japan declares “war” against floppy disks over

Digital Minister Kono had previously criticized the fact that there are still numerous official procedures that require the use of floppy disks, CDs or even mini-discs for the submission of applications and other forms.

(Bild: stock.adobe.com)

The Japanese government has officially declared its self-proclaimed "war" against floppy disks to be over. The responsible digital ministry spoke of a milestone on the way to modernizing the bureaucracy.

According to the ministry, it has succeeded in eradicating all 1034 remaining regulations according to which the antiquated storage medium was still to be used for certain administrative processes - with the exception of an environmental protection restriction in connection with the recycling of cars.

"We won the war against floppy disks on June 28!" Digital Minister Taro Kono, who had been a vocal advocate for the abolition of fax machines and other analog technology in the government, told Reuters in a statement on Wednesday.

The digital agency was founded during the coronavirus pandemic in 2021, when it became clear in the race to roll out nationwide testing and vaccination that the government was still relying on paper filing and outdated technology.

Kono, a charismatic personality with 2.5 million followers on X, previously headed the defense and foreign ministries as well as the deployment of the COVID vaccine, and took up his current position in August 2022 after his attempt to become prime minister failed.

However, Japan's digitization efforts have encountered numerous obstacles, according to the report. A contact tracing app flopped during the pandemic, and the launch of the government's digital ID card has been slower than hoped due to repeated data glitches.