| Native Name Lang: | ja |
| Office: | Minister of Finance |
| Primeminister: | Ryutaro Hashimoto |
| Term Start: | 27 January 1998 |
| Term End: | 30 July 1998 |
| Predecessor: | Hiroshi Mitsuzuka |
| Successor: | Kiichi Miyazawa |
| Office1: | Minister of International Trade and Industry |
| Primeminister1: | Toshiki Kaifu |
| Term Start1: | 9 August 1989 |
| Term End1: | 28 February 1990 |
| Predecessor1: | Seiroku Kajiyama |
| Successor1: | Kabun Mutō |
| Office2: | Minister of Education |
| Primeminister2: | Yasuhiro Nakasone |
| Term Start2: | 1 November 1984 |
| Term End2: | 28 December 1985 |
| Predecessor2: | Yoshirō Mori |
| Successor2: | Toshiki Kaifu |
| Office3: | Member of the House of Representatives |
| Constituency3: | Former Saitama 1st (1969–1996) Saitama 1st (1996–2000) |
| Term Start3: | 27 December 1969 |
| Term End3: | 2 June 2000 |
| Predecessor3: | Multi-member district |
| Successor3: | Koichi Takemasa |
| Birth Date: | 23 November 1928 |
| Birth Place: | Minamikushiyama, Japan |
| Party: | Liberal Democratic |
| Alma Mater: | Waseda University |
was a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) who briefly served as the Minister of Finance from 27 January to 30 July 1998.
Matsunaga was born on 23 November 1928.[1] He is a graduate of Waseda University's law school.
Matsunaga was an attorney and prosecutor.[2] He began his career as a public prosecutor in southern regions of Japan in the 1950s.[3] Later he became a member of the LDP,[3] being a member of the Seirankai.[4] Matsunaga was education minister in the mid-1980s.[5] He served as minister of international trade and industry.[6] He was appointed by Prime Minister Toshiki Kaifu to this post on 9 August 1989.[7]
Then he was appointed by Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto as the minister of finance on 27 January 1998.[8] Matsunaga replaced Hiroshi Mitsuzuka as finance minister.[9] Mitsuzuka was forced to resign due to corrupt behaviour of the officials at the ministry.[10] In April 1998, Matsunaga reported that 112 ministry officials would be punished due to their excessive entertainment from banks, brokerage firms and insurers under their supervision.[11] Matsunaga's term as finance minister was short lived, and he resigned on 30 July 1998, replaced by Kiichi Miyazawa, another veteran LDP politician.[12]
In addition to these cabinet roles, Matsunaga held the following positions in the Diet: Chairman of the lower house budget committee until 1998,[9] director of the Diet education committee and vice-chairman of the PARC education division.[13] He lost his seat in the lower house election on 25 June 2000.[14]
Matsunaga died on 11 October 2022, at the age of 93.[15]