Public Diplomacy

The exchange between Kochi Prefecture and Federated States of Micronesia began with the arrival of “Mori Koben,” a Japanese who moved to Truk Islands, now called Chuuk Lagoon, in 1891. More than 2000 descendants of Koben, “Mori Family,” still live in Chuuk State. Mori Family use a Japanese word “KIZUNA,” which means bonds, when they express the relationship with Kochi Prefecture. Beyond the 150th anniversary of his birth in 2019, “KIZUNA” between the two regions will continue.

Kasama ware is one of the local industries in Kasama City. The city is known as one of the largest production centers of pottery in East Japan and the closest to Tokyo. In response to an invitation from the city of Lahr, Germany, to the opening ceremony of the Kasama Ware Exhibition, the Mayor of Kasama and his group visited Lahr from January 16th to 20th. The article shows how Kasama City faces the future taking on new challenges, with descriptions on the successful ceremony, deepening friendship with Lahr and Kasama Ware’s aggressive development in overseas markets.

The affiliated organisations of 6 ports run by Aomori Prefecture, Ishikawa Prefecture, Sakai Port Authority, Kitakyushu City, Hiroshima Prefecture and Kobe City are working together to attract cruise ships for the purpose of increasing the number of foreign tourists visiting Japan.
In February, they held a Cruise Seminar in Japan House London in the UK, where the largest number of cruise shipping companies are located in Europe. They invited cruise shipping companies and travel agencies to explain convenience and tourism resources of each port. The participants had fruitful exchanges of opinions at the reception and conducted business negotiations.

MOFA has personnel exchange program with local governments; some local governments' officials are working OJT at MOFA in Tokyo and at Embassies and Consulates in the world. On Feb 18, local governments’ officials working at MOFA visited Embassy of Switzerland in Japan, and listened to a lecture on the relation between the Embassy and local governments in Japan. Through sister-city relationship and Host Town Initiative, Switzerland promotes exchanges with Japanese local governments. Ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Embassy is setting up “House of Switzerland” and driving a project “Doors to Switzerland-Japan2020”.

This shop celebrates its 17th anniversary. In front of JR Shinbashi Station, it shows dignified presence that attracts the eyes of people walking by. It is the first two-prefecture-jointly-operated antenna shop in Japan. The charms of Kagawa and Ehime prefectures, facing the beautiful Seto Inland Sea, are represented in a multiple layers.
Now, let's find out various seasonal items of Setouchi, invited by its sea breeze.