Suffix attached to ministry or agency names to form titles such as 外務長官 (Secretary of Foreign Affairs) or 内務長官 (Secretary of the Interior). Used in official government contexts.
The Secretary of Foreign Affairs issued a statement at the press conference.
The Secretary of the Interior explained the public safety measures.
Compound of 務 (mu, 'duty' or 'affairs') and 長官 (chōkan, 'chief' or 'director'), forming a suffix for government secretarial titles. The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the term is used in modern Japanese government nomenclature.