Japan relies on foreign workers to secure its transportation capacity Sign up now: Get insights on Asia's fast-moving developments TOKYO - “Check left and right. Check behind. All clear.” In mid-May, three Vietnamese men in their 20s and 30s were undergoing training to become truck drivers at a base of Tokyo-based logistics company Nakano Shokai in Atsugi, Kanagawa Prefecture. The men arrived in Japan at the end of January and were granted a five-year residence status under the Specified Skilled Worker (SSW) programme. They have already obtained Japanese driver’s licences and are currently learning Japanese traffic rules and culture. They are scheduled to begin working in inter-company logistics using medium-sized trucks in the Kanto region by the end of 2026. Nakano Shokai is a subsidiary of Yamato Holdings, the parent company of major parcel delivery firm Yamato Transport. It employs around 700 drivers. While the company is not currently facing a driver shortage, its managing director Yusuke Takada has expressed a strong sense of urgency, saying, “Unless we hire foreign drivers, we’ll inevitably see a decline in our transport capacity in the future.” The trend of hiring foreign drivers for logistics is spreading throughout the industry. Starting in 2027, Yamato HD plans to hire up to 500 Vietnamese drivers in Japan over a five-year period. Logistics giant SBS Holdings, meanwhile, plans to have foreign nationals make up about 30 per cent of its drivers - approximately 1,800 people - within 10 years. The trend is driven by a projected decline in the number of drivers due to Japan’s aging population and low birth rate. According to the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry’s Labour Force Survey, driver numbers in the road freight transport industry have remained flat. On the other hand, the proportion of drivers aged 50 and over has been