Tokyo 2020 Olympics Notebook - Day 4

‘Wakuhara’ is term for vaccine-hesitant employees

The coronavirus has indeed come with its own lexicon. There’s a big debate in Japan currently on whether employers should or should not force their employees to take the Covid-19 prevention vaccines.

Several vaccine-hesitant employees have raised concern over “vaccination harassment” which has already picked up a Japanese term “wakuhara.”

Most of the vaccine-hesitant employees cited fear of side effects, pre-existing health conditions and the vaccine’s tendency to develop allergic reactions.

Some of the “wakahura” expressed fears that they would be transferred or even sacked if they refused to take the jabs.

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Declining population worries local towns

Declining population in some Japanese towns is cause for great concern, with local authorities thinking hard of ways to keep numbers rising.

In Fujisato, Akida Prefecture (province), the administration has opted to raise the retirement age to 75 in a bid to retain a working population.

Children under 15 years form less than seven percent of the town’s population with only four babies born in the last year in this town.

Fujisato, with a population of 3,000 people, ranks as one of the towns with the highest number of elderly people in the world.

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Robots big winners during coronavirus pandemic

While many have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic, the calamity has benefitted some, including Japan’s robotics industry.

Owing to Covid-19 protocols that discourage physical contact, Japan’s robotics market is projected to grow from Sh1 trillion in 2010 to Sh10 trillion in 2035, a survey by Japan’s industry ministry says.

Kawasaki Heavy Industries Limited and Sony recently announced that they will get into a joint venture to develop remote robot control technology. They are targeting the logistics and medical supplies markets.

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Latest technology for Malkia Strikers

Malkia Strikers’ coaches have adopted the latest “Catapult” training technology in their preparations for the Olympic Games that launch here on July 23.

Little devices fitted into the players’ sports bras transmit data to a central computer which the coaches use to analyse various performances of the individual players including their speed, jumps and endurance.

The data is tailor-made for the various player positions with, for instance, readings for liberos and middle blockers analysed differently due to the differing roles.

This is the first time that African volleyball has adopted the “Catapult” technology.