Acknowledging that Japan has failed to fully promote the advancement of women, the Japanese government has pledged to elevate their status in the workplace and in the country’s political arena.

In the last five months, three women assumed high-profile political positions in Japan: The country’s new defense minister, the governor of Tokyo and the leader of the opposition Democratic Party are all women.

In the corporate world, “male business leaders started to view women’s empowerment not as a human rights issue but an economic issue,” said Kaori Sasaki, a prominent women’s rights advocate and president and chief executive officer of ewoman Inc., a think tank and consulting firm.