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Last Update : Friday, Apr 10, 2015

JapanGov Weekly

[Tuesday, Apr 7, 2015]

Pamphlet Showcases JICA Tohoku International Cooperation and Recovery Efforts

Pamphlet Showcases JICA Tohoku International Cooperation and Recovery Efforts
It was prepared for and distributed at the 3rd UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in March
photo
JICA Tohoku has published an English-language pamphlet highlighting how the region is leveraging synergy between its residents and those of developing countries to build more disaster-resilient societies in both places.

The pamphlet was prepared in advance of the Third United Nations World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction held in Sendai, Japan, March 14 to 18 and distributed there.

The pamphlet describes how the JICA Tohoku Office has accepted technical cooperation participants from developing countries, who in turn are teaching the people of the Tohoku region skills for increasing their resiliency.

Among the statistics in the pamphlet are that 3,417 Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers have been dispatched from the region to developing countries (as of Jan. 31, 2015). It also contains profiles of Tohoku residents who have been dispatched by JICA overseas and of people working for the recovery effort in the Tohoku region after the Great East Japan Earthquake.

TOHOKU x WORLD —Tohoku, Uniting with the World (PDF/2.88MB)

Designs by Oki SATO in Combination with Traditional Craftsmen's Techniques - Cool Japan Design Gallery - [Wednesday, Apr 8, 2015]

Regional Traditional Crafts to Be Exhibited during Expo Milano 2015

At Expo Milano 2015, the Cool Japan Design Gallery is to be established as one of the exhibitions at the Japan Pavilion, featuring traditional crafts which are created in collaboration between master craftsmen from every region in Japan and Mr. Oki SATO, a world-famous designer. Designating the year 2015 when the Expo is to be held as “the First Year for Promoting Craftsmen’s Techniques to the World”, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) will showcase traditional crafts globally in a more proactive manner for the five years leading up to the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

1. Expo Milano 2015 and the Japan Pavilion

With participation of approx. 140 countries and international organizations, the 2015 Universal Exhibition, Milan 2015(hereinafter referred to as Expo Milano 2015) will be held in Milan, Italy for 184 days, from May 1 through October 31. During the Expo, a variety of appealing pavilions will be exhibited under the theme of “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life.” The Government of Japan is to showcase the Japan Pavilion, with the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) and METI as organizers, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) as a sub-organizer, and the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) as a participating organization.

2. Exhibition of Japanese traditional crafts at the Japan Pavilion of Expo Milano 2015.

In the Japan Pavilion of the Expo, an exhibition zone named Cool Japan Design Gallery will be established in collaboration between Mr. Oki SATO and traditional Japanese master craftsmen, featuring traditional crafts such as Japanese-style tableware that is indispensable for Japanese foods, as one of the best examples of Cool Japan. Traditional crafts such as pottery, porcelain and lacquer ware are elements of Cool Japan that have a close relationship with food culture as well as regional resources scattered across every prefecture. Taking advantage of the Expo, traditional crafts and the craftsmen’s skills that bolster such crafts will be introduced to the world.

3. Japan Traditional Crafts Milano Square

Taking Expo Milano 2015 as an opportunity to call global attention to Japanese traditional crafts, the Association for the Promotion of Traditional Craft Industries is to open the Japan Traditional Crafts Milano Square in Milan through the support of METI for about six months during the Expo. This will be the first time that Japan has established an overseas base to exhibit about 200 kinds of Japan’s diverse traditional crafts at the same time for the fairly lengthy period of about six months. The depth of craftsman’s skills and the appeal of these skills, together with the Cool Japan Design Gallery in the Expo Milano 2015 Japan Pavilion, will be showcased to the world.

Release date
March 27, 2015

Division in charge

Information on Expo Milano 2015
International Exhibitions Promotion Office, Commerce, Distribution and Industrial Safety Policy Group
Information on Japan Traditional Crafts Milano Square and Traditional Crafts Traditional Craft Industry Office, Commerce and Information Policy Bureau

Related Information
Exposition
Cool Japan /Creative Industry Policy

[Monday, Apr 6, 2015]

Condolence Message from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to Prime Minister of Malaysia Najib Razak on the Helicopter Crash in Malaysia

On Monday, 6 April 2015, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe issued a message of condolence to Prime Minister of Malaysia Najib Razak on the helicopter crash that occurred on 4 April 2015 in Selangor, Malaysia, and killed all on board including those who were very close to Prime Minister Najib Razak.

[Friday, Apr 3, 2015]

Prime Minister Shinzo ABE and Foreign Minister Fumio KISHIDA issue Condolence Messages Following the Terrorist Attack on the Garissa University College in Garissa County of the Republic of Kenya

On 3 April, 2015, in response to the terrorist attack on the Garissa University College in Garissa County in northeastern Kenya and the report of the huge number of casualties, following message has been sent to H.E. Hon. Uhuru KENYATTA, President of the Republic of Kenya, from His Excellency Shinzo ABE, Prime Minister of Japan. In the same context, a similar message from His Excellency Fumio KISHIDA, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, was sent to Ambassador AMINA Mohamed, Cabinet Secretary for Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade of the Republic of Kenya.

"I received the news of the terrorist attack on the Garissa University College in Garissa County and the report of the huge number of casualties with great shock and anger. Japan condemns this brutal act of terrorism in the strongest possible terms. Taking the lives of dozens of innocent students at the University through the heinous acts of terrorism cannot be justified for any reasons.
On behalf of the Government as well as the people of Japan, I would like to offer my sincerest prayer for those who lost their lives and my deepest condolences to their bereaved families. I would also like to express my utmost sympathy to those who sustained injuries during the attack.
Let me convey to you that Japan stands with Kenya in this difficult moment. Japan is determined to support the Government as well as the people of Kenya in fighting terrorism in close cooperation with members of the international community."