Press Releases
Foreign Minister Kishida Visits Kagawa Prefecture and Hyogo Prefecture
(Sixth Round of the “Local to Global” Project)
From July 22 to 23, Mr. Fumio Kishida, Minister for Foreign Affairs, visited Kagawa Prefecture and Hyogo Prefecture and attended events as part of the sixth round of the “Local to Global” Project. The overview is as follows. Minister Kishida was accompanied by the diplomatic corps in Japan consisting of ambassadors and minister from 10 countries for a part of the itinerary, and by Mr. Shunsuke Takei, Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, for the entire visit.
1. Lunch discussion with the diplomatic corps in Japan and Kagawa Prefecture business community
At lunchtime on July 22, Minister Kishida had lunch in Ritsurin Koen Park, which is the best traditional Japanese garden in Kagawa, with the accompanying ambassadors and minister in Japan together with Mr. Keizo Hamada, Governor of Kagawa Prefecture, Mr. Hideto Onishi, Mayor of Takamatsu City, as well as Kagawa Prefecture business community, where they exchanged views on how to spread Kagawa Prefecture’s sightseeing resources to overseas markets.
2. Udon-making workshop
On the afternoon of July 22, Minister Kishida visited the Nakano Udon School(Takamatsu Branch) with Governor Hamada, Mayor Onishi and the accompanying ambassadors and minister , where they experienced making Sanuki udon noodles of Kagawa, “the Udon Prefecture”. They enjoyed the noodles that they had made themselves afterwards.
3. Visit to Kinryo Shoyu soy sauce brewery
Following that the visit to the Nakano Udon School, Minister Kishida traveled to Shodoshima Island, together with Governor Hamada, Mr. Yukio Shiota, Mayor of Shodoshima Town, and the ambassadors and minister Minister Kishida visited Kinryo Shoyu, a soy sauce brewery founded on the Island in 1880. Surrounded by the aroma of unrefined soy sauce within the cellar of over 100 years of history, they participated in the the brewery’s presentation of the soy sauce manufacturing process and toured inside of the cellar.
4. Visit to Roadside Station Shodoshima Olive Park
Subsequently, Minister Kishida visited the Roadside Station Shodoshima Olive Park together with Governor Hamada, Mayor Shiota and the accompanying ambassadors and minister. The presentation was given on the history of olive cultivation on Shodoshima Island; olive cultivation to Japan started trials approximately 100 years ago only became successful on the island, the cultivation process underwent repeated trials and errors. Minister Kishida also planted an olive tree to commemorate his visit to the island as part of the “Local to Global” Project.
5. Dinner discussion with the accompanying ambassadors and ministerin Japan and others on Shodoshima Island
In addition, at a hotel on Shodoshima Island, Minister Kishida exchanged views with the accompanying ambassadors and minister, Governor Hamada, Mr. Kunihiko Saegusa, Mayor of Tonosho Town, and Mayor Shiota on effective promotion of the appeal of Kagawa Prefecture and Shodoshima Island, while enjoying a dinner made from local food materials such as seafood from Seto Inland Sea, which is also known as the "Jewel of the World,” and olives from Shodoshima Island.
6. Visit to the Earthquake Memorial Monument
On the morning of July 23, Minister Kishida, with Mr. Toshiro Tamada, Vice Mayor of Kobe City, visited the Earthquake Memorial Monument within Kobe East Park, Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture, and offered flowers.
7. Meeting with the Kansai Consular Corps
Following that, Minister Kishida held a meeting with the Consul- Generals and other consular officials in Kansai at a hotel in Kobe City, and exchanged views on matters such as proposals by the consular corps for enhancing Kansai’s appeal.
8. Lunch discussion with Hyogo Prefecture business community
Minister Kishida then held a lunch discussion with Hyogo Prefecture business community at a hotel in Kobe City, and exchanged views on effective promotion of the attractiveness of Hyogo Prefecture.
9. Symposium “Dialogue with Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida: Conveying Hyogo Prefecture’s Appeal to the World”
Minister Kishida attended a symposium entitled “Dialogue with Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida: Conveying Hyogo Prefecture’s Appeal to the World” that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs held at Kobe University’s Idemitsu Sazo Memorial Rokkodai Auditorium, where he delivered a keynote speech and participated in a panel discussion.
Following greetings from Parliamentary Vice-Minister Takei and Mr. Hiroshi Takeda, President of Kobe University, Minister Kishida delivered a keynote speech on conveying the appeal of Hyogo Prefecture to the world.
At the panel discussion that featured Mr. Toshizo Ido, Governor of Hyogo Prefecture, Ms. Kimiko Itoh, Representative Director, Tashima & Company, Ltd. (Vice President, Kobe Chamber of Commerce and Industry), Mr. Kenji Fukuoka, Vice President, Kobe Institute of Computing / Graduate School of Information Technology, Minister Kishida and Parliamentary Vice-Minister Takei, the panelists held a lively discussion on conveying the appeal of Hyogo Prefecture to the world.
(Reference) The diplomatic corps in Japan that accompanied Minister Kishida to Kagawa Prefecture (10 countries in all)
Estonia, Norway, Rwanda, India, Mozambique, Colombia, Canada, Morocco, Indonesia, and the Republic of Korea.