Hirofumi Takinami

Hirofumi Takinami is a corporate affiliate visiting fellow at Shorenstein APARC for 2009-10 and 2010-11.  He is currently undertaking a collaborative research with Professor Phillip Lipscy, one of the faculty of Shorenstein APARC and Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science, on the financial crises in Japan and the U.S.

Takinami has been working for the Japanese government for 16 years.  He served, among others, in policy coordination and management positions notably in the public finance area, including Deputy Cabinet Counselor in charge of coordinating domestic and economic policies at Cabinet Secretariat; Director for Office of Planning and Personnel Management, Deputy Budget Examiner on social security expenditures and Deputy Director for Legal Division at the Ministry of Finance.

In addition to positions related to domestic policy, Takinami also worked internationally, attending as one of Japanese delegates to meetings, including Ministerial-level, of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM).  While sent to the Ministry of Justice, he served as Special Advisory Staff to the Director-General of Criminal Affairs Bureau, addressing international economic crimes. 

Takinami graduated from the University of Tokyo in 1994, earning a Bachelor of Law.  In his first dispatch to the United States by the Ministry of Finance, he received a Master of Public Policy from the University of Chicago in 1998 with a major in finance and public finance.

Takinami was born and raised in Ono, Fukui, the prefecture next to Kyoto, known for producing many CEO's in Japan.  He is proud of inheriting the virtues of "dilligence, honesty and gratitutde" of this snowy country.