Director-General, Regional Economic and Industrial Policy Group

HAMANO Koichi

Mr. Hamano Koichi was appointed as Commissioner of the Japan Patent Office (JPO) in July 2022. He manages JPO operations and oversees Japan's policy on patents, trademarks, and design rights.

Since joining METI, Mr. Hamano has served in a wide range of senior posts. These include Director of the Finance Division, Business Environment Department, Small and Medium Enterprise Agency; Counselor for Energy Policy, Minister's Secretariat; Director of the Policy Planning Division, Natural Resources and Fuel Department, Agency for Natural Resources and Energy; Director of the Accounts Division, Minister's Secretariat; Executive Vice President and Advisor of Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC); Councillor, Cabinet Secretariat, Assistant Chief Cabinet Secretary's Office as well as Director-General of the Regional Economic and Industrial Policy Group at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI).

While serving as Director of the Finance Division of the Business Environment Department, Small and Medium Enterprise Agency, Mr. Hamano supported efforts to secure cash flow for SMEs in Japan. In his role as Director of the Policy Planning Division of the Natural Resources and Fuel Department, Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, Mr. Hamano coordinated efforts to ensure the stable supply of resources and fuel in Japan.

In 2016, during his time as Executive Vice President of JOGMEC, Mr. Hamano helped facilitate support for the development of oil fields for Japanese companies operating overseas and made significant contributions to JOGMEC’s efforts to strengthen Japan’s energy security.

As Councillor at the Cabinet Secretariat, Assistant Chief Cabinet Secretary's Office, Mr. Hamano took charge of the designing and planning of significant initiatives for the Cabinet, coordinating changes across the national government.

Most recently, since July 2020, he served as Director-General of the Regional Economic and Industrial Policy Group at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI). As head of METI's Regional Economic and Industrial Policy Group, his responsibilities included fostering regional economic growth and industrial location. Mr. Hamano had also been a METI Coordinator, acting as the primary contact for the Headquarters for Overcoming Population Decline and Vitalizing Local Economies in Japan, and organizing the activities of METI's ten Regional Bureaus.

Mr. Hamano graduated from The University of Tokyo’s Faculty of Law and studied at the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris.

He was born in Fukushima on May 6, 1964.