Okinawa business group explores South Pacific opportunities [1]
Friday, November 11, 2011 - 09:31. Updated on Wednesday, September 11, 2013 - 09:54.
A group of business people from the island of Okinawa in southern Japan visited Tonga for four days from November 5-9.
The Water Business Study Group were in Tonga to explore opportunities in water, renewable energy and waste management.
The leader of the group, Chnen Eiji, said on November 8 that there are a lot of environmental similarities between Okinawa and Tonga, and they believed that there may be opportunities for closer business relationships between Okinawa and Tonga.
Chnen said that the 6th Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting, Palm 6, will be held in Okinawa in May 2012, and they hoped the findings from their visit could be further developed with the Okinawa business community and their Tongan counterparts.
The group visited Vava'u to observe their water and waste management.
The Japanese Water Business Study Group was established by the Okinawa Employer's Association in July 2011, and their visit to Tonga was
coordinated by the Miyakojima Municipality and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
A representative from the Japanese Embassy in Tonga said that even though there is already a working relation between the Japanese government and the Tongan government in the areas of water, renewable energy and waste management, they were also ] encouraging the Japanese private sector to engage with their Tongan counterparts in these areas.
The Japanese Water Business Study Group will publish a report of their visit before the Palm summit in May next year.
The group also visited Samoa and Fiji.