was a Japanese bureaucrat and politician who served as the Governor of

Fukuoka is the List of Japanese cities by population, sixth-largest city in Japan and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancient times. ...

from 1995 to 2011.元福岡県知事の麻生渡さん死去　85歳　地方分権推進に尽力
From 2005 to 2011 he was also President of the .

Personal Background

Wataru Asō was born in Tobata City,

Fukuoka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 Square kilometre, km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders ...

(now Tobata ward, Kitakyushu city). After graduating from Fukuoka Prefectural Tobata High School, he went on to study at Graduate School of Law and Faculty of Law, Kyoto University. Upon graduating in 1963, he joined the

Ministry of International Trade and Industry The was a Ministry (government department), ministry of the Government of Japan from 1949 to 2001. The MITI was one of the most powerful government agencies in Japan and, at the height of its influence, effectively ran much of Japanese industri ...

(MITI).

Career in Government

During his career as a bureaucrat, Asō held several key positions within MITI, including roles in energy, trade policy, industrial planning, and foreign affairs. Some of his notable appointments include: * 1963: Entered the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) * 1989: Director-General of the Kinki Bureau of International Trade and Industry * 1990: Deputy Director-General of Trade Policy Bureau, MITI * 1991: Director-General of Commerce and Distribution Policy * 1992–1994: Commissioner of the Japan Patent Office

Political career

Asō was Governor of

from 1995 to 2011. In the 1995 Fukuoka gubernatorial election, Asō ran as an independent candidate and won. He was re-elected in 1999, 2003, and 2007, serving four consecutive terms until 2011. During his tenure, he promoted regional development, industrial innovation, and decentralization policies, while also advocating for increased autonomy for local governments. In 2005, he was elected as the 10th president of the

National Governors Association The National Governors Association (NGA) is an American Politics of the United States, political organization founded in 1908. The association's members are the governors of the 55 U.S. state, states, Territories of the United States, territories ...

, marking the first time in history that an election was held for the position.

Resignation as Governor

Despite contemplating a fifth term, he decided against running for re-election due to growing criticism of long-term incumbency and a corruption scandal involving a former deputy governor. He stepped down in April 2011, and his successor, Hiroshi Ogawa, was endorsed as his preferred candidate.

Post-Governorship

Following his retirement from politics, Asō remained active in business and academia: * 2011: Became a special advisor to

JR Kyushu The , also referred to as , is one of the seven constituent companies of Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It operates intercity rail services within Kyushu, Japan. It formerly operated the Beetle hydrofoil service across the Tsushima Strait be ...

. * 2012: Appointed as President of Fukuoka Airport Building Co., Ltd. * 2017: Received the

Order of the Rising Sun The is a Japanese honors system, Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese government, created on 10 April 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge feat ...

, Grand Cordon

Death

On 15 March 2025, Wataru Asō passed away at the age of 85 from pancreatic cancer at Kyushu University Hospital in Fukuoka City.

Awards and Recognition

* 2007:

Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology The , also known as MEXT, is one of the eleven ministries of Japan that compose part of the executive branch of the government of Japan. History The Meiji period, Meiji government created the first Ministry of Education in 1871. In January 2001 ...

Award (for promoting regional industrial clusters) * 2009: Japan Business Federation Chairman's Award (for establishing a global research hub on hydrogen materials) * 2017: Order of the Rising Sun, Grand Cordon

Personal Interests

* Practiced

Judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

since high school, reaching fourth-degree black belt * Skilled in Go (traditional Japanese board game), ranked at amateur fifth dan * Appeared in a Fukuoka rice commercial alongside Olympic judoka Ryoko Tani.

References

Sources

External links

* * *
English-language NGA website
1939 births 2025 deaths People from Kitakyushu Kyoto University alumni Governors of Fukuoka Prefecture {{Japan-politician-1930s-stub