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Speaker:
・Mr. Kentaro Yamaguchi, Special Assistant to the Governor(for SDGs), Kanagawa Prefectual Government
・Mr. Tsuyoshi Murao, Manager of Civic Hall Construction Planning Office, Culture Division, Industry&Culture Dept., Marugame City

Moderator:
・Mr. Masaki Kochi, Director, Social Impact Management Initiative / CEO, K-three
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Session eight, on social impact and the role of the public sector, introduced two case studies of social impact management in the public sector. SIMI believes that this session was helpful for both government officials and those who collaborate with government to consider incorporating social impact management as a means for strengthening impact and learning.

 The Kanagawa Prefecture has since FY2018 been implementing an ecosystem formation project to widen the practice of linking the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) and social impact management with a broad aim of regional revitalization. This project has two characteristics 1) promoting the SDGs and 2) mobilizing the interest of private actors with a focus on connecting businesses and finance. The significance of social impact management led by public entities could include facilitating the articulation of corporate value, clarifying points for improvement in business practice by demonstrating and reporting results, and incorporating the SDGs into management. By combining these aspects, the project is serving as an important vehicle for promoting the SDGs.

 Marugame City has been using the social impact management (SIM) approach for the construction of public cultural facilities. The characteristics include 1) using the SIM even before the design of infrastructure projects starts, and 2) utilizing SIM for improving public administration. Through utilizing social impact management in the effort to make the facilities social institutions open to the local community instead of mere art and cultural exhibits, the officials put together key ingredients for successful implementation. They include accountability to taxpayers (reflected in various plans), changing the core of evaluation from outputs to outcomes, strengthening of cooperation with actors from other fields, raising citizens’ awareness, and securing new financial resources.

 Both of these initiatives are unprecedented and challenging, and from what was presented as they continue to explore their journey, we can expect the importance of social impact management led by public sector will increase in the future.