EU-JAPAN NEWSDECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16

EU-JAPAN ECONOMIC
PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT
WHAT OPPORTUNITIES WILL THE EPA OFFER TO
EUROPEAN SMES?
The EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement is foreseen to come into force in early 2019 giving opportunities
to European SMEs to start exporting or strengthen their exports to Japan. With the agreement, the exporters will
benefit from preferential treatment upon importation into Japan provided that their products are originating in theEuropean Union.
To raise awareness of the opportunities this agreement offers and to help EU SMEs take advantage of them, the EUJapan Centre, under the supervision of the European Commission, has launched an EPA Helpdesk to support and guide
EU SMEs in their search for relevant information.

EPA HELPDESKThe “EPA Helpdesk” (https://www.eu-japan.eu/epa-helpdesk ) will provide detailed information as well as recommendations
on the potential benefits the EU-Japan EPA will offer to EU SMEs. The helpdesk will answer EPA-related queries, publish information packs each of them composed of a factsheet and practical guide covering a specific topic or sector and organise webinars.
FORTHCOMING WEBINAROPPORTUNITIES FOR EUROPEAN SMES IN JAPAN’S GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT MARKET• Date of webinar: 13 December 2018 - Time of webinar is Brussels time: 10:30 - 11:30
It is to be noticed that the EPA will give European companies additional opportunities in Japan’s government or public
procurement market. While European companies have already enjoyed access to Japanese government contracts under the
WTO Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA), the EPA builds upon the GPA and gives European companies additional
access to procurement by Japanese government entities and extra assurances to compete with Japanese companies on alevel playing field. In the upcoming EPA Helpdesk seminar,
Lyckle Griek managing the Japan Tax & Public Procurement (JTPP) Helpdesk at the EU-Japan Centre will explain how European
SMEs can benefit from the agreement.
This webinar is part of a series of webinars managed by the EU-Japan EPA Helpdesk. Each webinar will address a different topic or
sector and will look at the changes the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement will make and the opportunities it will create.
Webinar registrations: https://www.eu-japan.eu/events/epa-helpdesk-webinar-2-opportunities-european-smes-japans-market
More information about the EPA : http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/in-focus/eu-japan-economic-partnership-agreement/

IN THIS ISSUE
日欧産業協力センターでは、季刊英文ニュース
レター「EU-Japan News」を通じて、さまざまな日・ＥＵ関係の情報を発信しています。

> CENTRE’S NEWS .................................................................................................1-9

欧州連合日本政府代表部/欧州委員会より> JAPAN NEWS ...................................................................................................... 9-23

• News from Japan....................... 16-23• News from the EU...................... 10-15• 日・ＥＵ関係イベント案内................ 24-34
日・ＥＵ中小企業間のパートナーシップ促進支
援エンタープライズ・ヨーロッパ・ネットワーク
より• ビジネスパートナー募集情報、他....... 35-36> EU NEWS ..................................................................................................................10-15> EU-JAPAN NEWS ..........................................................................................24-34> ENTERPRISE EUROPE NETWORK PARTNERINGOPPORTUNITIES ................................................................................................. 35-36> CALENDAR...................................................................................................................37

CENTRE’S NEWS

EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 2

TOWARDS A REGIONAL COOPERATION PLATFORM
The EU-Japan Centre for industrial cooperation organised on 20 November 2018 a conference on cooperation between
European regions and Japanese regions where European regions e.g. Alsace, North Rhine Westphalia, Flanders, andJapanese Prefectures e.g. Iwate, Gifu, Osaka share their experience of cooperation in various domains important forbusiness, trade, investment, research and innovation, people mobility, as well as tourism and cultural dimensions. Rich
discussions, plenty of suggestions and a lot of enthusiasm to further develop regional cooperation

The idea coming out of the discussions
is to put in place a regional cooperation
platform where regions in Europe andin Japan could find what they need,e.g. find regional partner, existing EU
and Japanese instruments, funding andprogrammes for implementing cooperation, co-financing of projects, etc.
An important aspect on the Europeanside is to build on existing EU initiatives networks such as EEN, network ofclusters, networks of regions, H2020, etc. Also important for designing the concept of EU-Japan regional cooperation platform
is to include the dimension of EU-Japan regional cooperation to operate together in third countries, e.g. regions in South East
Asia, Latin America or Africa. Hence regional cooperation reflecting the important trend of European and Japanese businesses
to forge alliances / partnership on third markets.
EU-Japan regional cooperation appears as an effective means for bringing dynamism to regional economy by internationalizing activities of local entities, in particular SMEs. An important factor to ensuring they fully benefit from the EU-Japan
Economic Partnership Agreement expected to enter into force at the beginning of 2019.
 https://www.eu-japan.eu/events/cooperation-between-european-and-japanese-regions

EU SME SUPPORT TO
INTERNATIONALISATION
IN THE CONTEXT OF
THE EU-JAPAN EPA
On the occasion of the visit of Mr Julien
Guerrier, Director of the European
Commission Executive Agency for Smalland Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME),
the EU-Japan Centre for Industrial
Cooperation organised a briefing outlining; (a) how EASME concretely supports European SMEs to internationalise
their activities, and (b) how EASME’s
initiatives help European SMEs benefit
from the newly concluded EU-Japan
Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA).
The report of the event is available on
the Centre’s website.
https://www.eu-japan.eu/events/
eu-sme-support-internationalization-context-eu-japan-epa

3RD EU-JAPAN CSR BUSINESS DIALOGUEMEETING

The 3rd EU-Japan CSR Business Dialogue Meeting took place on 23 November
and was entitled “Responsible Global Sourcing – A Collaborative Approach to
Achieve the SDGs”.

The event brought together 70 representatives of EU and Japanese companies,business associations and Authorities to discuss challenges, share best practice andexplore opportunities for business collaboration.
Key points raised included: that businesses must promote responsible businessconduct; the need for strong top management leadership and engagement; that
the EU and Japan must lead in the field of sustainability and CSR; the need for astronger, action-oriented multi-stakeholder collaborative approach; and that SDGdriven innovation and growth can solve societal and supply chain issues.
The 3rd EU-Japan CSR Business Dialogue meeting, of which the EU-Japan Centre
was a co-organiser, fed ideas into the meeting of the 4th Working Group on
Corporate Social Responsibility under the formal EU-Japan Industrial Policy
Dialogue between the European Commission and METI.
 https://www.eu-japan.eu/events/3rd-eu-japan-csr-business-dialogue-meetingCENTRE’S NEWS

EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 3

THE EU-JAPAN CENTRE FOR INDUSTRIAL
COOPERATION SIGNS AN MoU WITH THE
OSAKA PREFECTURAL GOVERNMENT
On 9 October, Dr Philippe de Taxis du Poët, General Manager of the EUJapan Centre for Industrial Cooperation, and Mr Junichi Nishida, Director
General Department of Commerce Industry and Labour of Osaka Prefectural
Government, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

The signing ceremony took place aspart of the opening of the European
Biotech & Pharma Partnering Event
which was jointly organised by Osaka
Bio Headquarters and the EU-Japan
Centre with the support of several EU
Member State organisations. (See also
on page 16)

The MoU aims at enhancing cooperation between the signing parties andfor continuing joint activities, such as
the annual European Biotech & Pharma
Partnering Event in Osaka.
In a follow up visit of Mr Nishida to the
EU-Japan Centre, further collaboration
opportunities have been discussed.

The Osaka Prefectural government also
agreed to contribute to a seminar oncooperation between European andJapanese regions organised by the EUJapan Centre.

LEAN IN EUROPE VISITS
Details of one recent visit and two upcoming ones:

The 20th Lean in Europe visit was to GKN Driveline, a leading automotive driveline technology and systems engineering company in Zumaia, in Spain on Tuesday 13 November.
The visit focused on GKN Driveline’s use of lean manufacturing deployment plant-wide, digital factory model and a
Factory 4.0 roadmap. 16 Lean enthusiasts, from thirteen EU
Member States, took part.
 https://www.eu-japan.eu/events/lean-europe-visit-20-gkndriveline-zumaia
Participants in the 20th Lean in Europe visit to GKN Driveline Zumaia
The 21st Lean in Europe visit will be to Toyota’s Engine Plant
in North Wales (UK) on Wednesday 5 December 2018. The visit will focus on: TPS and the Toyota Way; machining areas; final assembly; standard parts supply; shipping out; the dojo; and the quality circle area. 22 Lean practitioners will join the visit.

 https://www.eu-japan.eu/events/lean-europe-visit-21-toyota-deeside-engine-plant

The 22nd Lean in Europe visit will take place at the Amorim Group, in Portugal on 13-14 March 2019. Details will be uploaded soon on the main Lean in Europe webpage. You can pre-register your interest by emailing lean@eu-japan.eu
 https://www.eu-japan.eu/events/lean-visits-europe

SEPTEMBER ISSUE OF THE JAPANESE INDUSTRY AND POLICY NEWSLEGISLATION AND POLICY NEWSCOMPANY NEWSADDITIONAL TOPICS· Joint team for promoting exports ofagricultural, forestry and fishery products and foods determines their future
efforts· Conference of the cabinet office andministries responsible for measures for
mid-ranking companies held

· Electric vehicle can run elevators· J-POWER and ENGIE sign MoU forcollaboration for offshore wind power
projects· Paper cup which use biodegradable
plastic to be marketed· Oji to accelerate the development ofenvironment-friendly plastics· Toyota and JR East have signed anagreement on a hydrogen-based mobility partnership· NEDO expands the project scope ofsmart community demonstration in
Slovenia· JIS for electric-power-assisted bicycles
revised· Winners of the 12th Kids DesignAwards selected

SURVEY AND BUSINESS DATA· METI releases a report on digitaltransformation· MoE published first analysis of household CO2 emission· Strong interest showed in sharing taxi

 https://www.eu-japan.eu/publications/september-2018-japanese-industry-and-policy-news

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EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 4

GET READY FOR JAPAN 2018 SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED
Following a one year of hiatus, the EU-Japan Centre is pleased to announce the successful completion of its 1st editionof Get Ready For Japan (GRFJ) training programme.

CALL FOR APPLICATIONSGET READY FORJAPAN• Mission dates: 20-31 May 2019
• Application deadline: 31 January 2019
The EU-Japan Centre launched the
2nd edition of its 2-week programme“Get Ready for Japan” drawn fromthe 4-week long Human Resources
Training Programme. The Get Readyfor Japan programme provides EU
businessmen with a professional
Japan-related expertise. It is focused on
business management and consists ofa combination of lectures, case studies,role-plays and company visits.

GRFJ is a revised version of a similar programme that has been managed by theCentre for over 30 years, aimed to support EU managers and companies in theirunderstanding of Japanese business culture and improve their business activities
with Japan.
From 5-16 November, twelve EU companies’ representatives coming from nine different EU Member States and one COSME country*, undergo an intensive training
inclusive of lectures on Japan, field visits, cultural workshops etc., so to provide
participants with a fundamental knowledge of Japan before starting (or further
develop) business with Japanese partners.
TAILORED B2B MEETINGS
The programme also included the organisation of tailored B2B meetings withpotential Japanese partners that would match the EU companies’ needs in theirbusiness with Japan. On average each participant could meet four Japanese companies during the course, and for one of the participants a cooperation agreement
was even achieved on the spot with the first time met Japanese partner.
MULTISECTORAL ASPECT
The multisectoral aspect of the mission is also important as the EU companies werefrom a wide fan of sectors such as: ICT, food, aerospace, pharmaceutical, automotive,
service providers, trading etc.
Once the mission is over this is not the end of it, as the EU-Japan Centre will now
keep on following up the participants so to support them in their relation with themet potential Japanese partners.
Next year programme is now open for registration.
*COSME is the EU programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and Small and Medium-sizedEnterprises running from 2014 – 2020. Some non-EU countries are participating to this programme.
(http://ec.europa.eu/DocsRoom/documents/31602)

Preferred profile: “ideally” suited forexecutives of EU SMEs who need a quick
and practical preparation to maximise
their chance of building a successful
partnership.
 https://www.eu-japan.eu/events/
get-ready-for-japan-training-programme

By MILAN RODIĆ,CEO, MEDIA LAB
 http://www.medialab.ba/“Participation in the Get Ready for Japan
programme had a great significance,
not only for my company, but also
for me personally. I learned skills andinformation crucial for business successin Japan. The lectures, workshops andcompany visits were carefully pickedand executed in order to provide a deep
understanding of Japan’s businessecosystem.
And the best thing - I had a chance
to use that knowledge right away on
individual meetings with prospective
partners (organised by the EU-Japan
Centre). Several meetings were very
successful, and our first contract was
signed during the programme itself!
Our hosts from the EU-Japan Centre were
warm, caring and always there to help us
in any way we needed.

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EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 5

WORLD CLASS MANUFACTURINGMISSION IN JAPAN SEPTEMBER 2018

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

2019 WCMMISSION IN JAPAN• Training dates: 24-28 June 2019
• Application deadline: 21 March 2019
The 5-day World Class Manufacturing
training mission (WCM) gives theperfect opportunity to visit some of theworld’s most advanced factories.

This summer, the EU-Japan Centre organised the 43rd edition of its WorldClass Manufacturing mission in Japan. The mission took place from Monday 10
to Friday 14 September in Nagoya.

Twenty five participants from Finland, Germany, Italy, UK, Austria, Portugal, Lithuania,
Spain, Belgium, Slovakia, Ireland, Greece, Denmark and the Netherlands, working invarious industrial sectors were selected for this mission.
This 5-day training in Japan gave them an in-depth analysis of Japanese manufacturing methodologies structured around lectures, workshops, practical training,roundtable discussions and plant tours (Toyota Body Seiko, Suzaki Industries, JTEKT
and Mitsubishi Motors Corporation Okazaki Plant).
One of the highlights of this 43rd edition of WCM was to invite the president of Kinki
Kogyo Inc., a SME from the east part of Osaka. The Japanese SME shared with participants its “lean Journey” and some of the challenges they are facing every day.

The training mission in Japan provides
participants with:(1) Lectures on Japan’s production
improvement methods,(2) 1-day practical workshop coachedby TPS experts,(3) Plant tours + Q&A guided by
Japanese managers,(4) Networking and knowledge-sharing
among participants.
No tuition fee for SMEs who will also
benefit from a grant of 600€/ perparticipant.
https://www.eu-japan.eu/events/
world-class-manufacturing

ABOUT THE WCM MISSIONS
By ROBERT O’NEIL, Operations Manager from Welsh
Automotive Forum, attended the WCM mission in
September 2018.

By CLAUDIA OLGA EDLMAYR, Director of Pressed
Ceramics Technology/Multilayer Technology at EPCOSOHG, attended the WCM mission in June 2018.

“The Mission demonstrates that the TPS Toolbox embraces
and emphasises the significance of process mapping, physicalmapping, kaizen loops, visualisation, standard work as well as
Jidoka. The importance of a team is fundamental and paramountto the successful application of TPS. The Japanese culture andcustom in business expects a low-cost product with high quality,
meaning that there is a significant expectation on continuous
improvement (via Kaizen). The mission to Japan really gives
the attendees an appreciation of the focus and relentless drive
to continuous improvement and waste elimination in a very
different and unique business environment. It became evident
from the Mission that the objective of TPS is to constantly
challenge associates to remove waste and subsequently become
more competitive. The relentless focus to capturing the necessary
data and facts in order to start with Kaizen activities was all too
apparent.”“The WCM Mission in Nagoya was for me the best training mission I
have ever attended since then. The combination of lectures, handson training and factory visits gave me a very clear picture on
how TPS and Kaizen are implemented in Japan in daily business.
I also want to highlight that the enthusiasm of the team who
provided the lectures was brilliant. In my company we work withlean methods since many years. So for us it is very important tosustain and improve the system further. Especially a strong lean
leadership is needed to be successful: “Touching the hearts, heads
and the hands of the people…” These are my special topics forme implementing in my company: (1) Bring my own enthusiasm
within my team as leader and also humour to catch the people (2)Keeping the necessary tools as simple as possible (3) Bringing the
focus of the team on all kinds of waste (muda) (4) Be daily present in
the production (GEMBA). Finally I would like to add that it was also
a great experience exchanging with people from all over Europe.
Everybody was so open-minded and it was a great pleasure for me
to be a part of all the discussions during the Mission.”CENTRE’S NEWS

EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 6

NEWS FROM THE JAPAN TAX & PUBLIC PROCUREMENT HELPDESKJAPAN BRACES ITSELF FOR CONSUMPTION TAX HIKE IN 2019
After repeated postponements of the increase in Japan’s consumption tax (CT) rate to 10%, Prime Minister Abe now
looks determined to implement the increase from October 1, 2019. To counter possible negative effects on domestic
demand, the government is working on various proposals to soften the impact, while powerful industrial sectors such as
the automotive and construction industry are pushing for tax breaks to have their sectors shielded from the CT increase.
The government is presently considering extending longer mortgage tax breaks for homeowners to up to 15 year, andthere is a strong lobby to cut purchase tax on cars.

For smaller retailers, the Cabinet is presently looking into
systems to give consumers a temporary 2% rebate if they buy
daily necessities using cashless means of payment. The CT
increase will also coincide with the introduction of a diversified tax system, with similarities to the EU, where different
tax rates will apply for daily necessities such as food andproducts deemed as luxury items. If the temporary rebate is
implemented, it would mean that customers will only pay 6%
on their daily groceries during the first six months after the
hike.
8%

10%

Basic foodstuffs
Take-out/home delivery
Catering to nursing
homes

Alcoholic beverages
DiningCatering
Medicines/Quasi drugs

In the long run however, foodstuffs will remain at the current
8% rate, with the exception of alcoholic beverages. Whilemost EU consumers have been familiar with this for many
years, it is likely that for many Japanese consumers and businesses, it will be a source of bewilderment at first. To counter
this, The Tax Agency has already started a Q&A explaining inwhich cases the lower rate will apply.

SPECIFIED INVOICESBusinesses involved in sales and purchase of foodstuffs will
have to specify the applied tax
rates in their invoices and accounting in the coming years. SMEs
will have a number of years toadapt their accounting to the new
regime, with the application ofitemised invoices with the applicable CT rates until March 2021,
and adding at VAT-like number,amount of each CT rate and thetotal in CT printed on their invoices
by 2023. At that time, Japanese inSource: gov-online.go.jp
voices will look much more similar
to invoices used in the EU.
For consumers and businesses alike, the distinction between
buying food and dining in particular will be a source of confusion. For example, in the ubiquitous convenience stores,
if a customer buys a snack and walks out of the shop, thelower rate would apply, but if the customer was to sit downin the store’s cafeteria area and consume it there, it would
be regarded as dining. This would mean that the store clerk
would have to check with the consumer, whether he or she isplanning to consume in or outside of the store. It is likely thatin the coming year up to October there will be a lot of discussions regarding CT in Japan.

QUESTION ABOUT JAPANESE TAXES?
The Japan Tax & Public Procurement (JTPP) Helpdesk provides information regarding Japanese taxation matters to EU SMEs.
You can find us at  https://www.eu-japan.eu/taxes-accounting

POLICY ANALYSIS RESEARCH IN JAPANThe EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation (a joint venture between the Japanese
Government and the European Commission) is launching the 2019-1st slot of its “MINERVA” EU-Japan Fellowship: a 6-months
in-house fellowship scheme in Japan, targeting EU / COSME and Japanese academics, trade/ economic analysts and civil
servants.
The scheme is designed to support the Centre's policy analysis of EU-Japan economic and industrial issues.
Next slot: 1 April – 30 September 2019 - Deadline to apply: 15 December 2018 - Fellowship: €2000 / month - Location: Tokyo, Japan
Application documents to submit: CV, Cover Letter, Research Topic/Research Plan (1-2 A4 pages). The application materials
and possible enquiries should be sent to the following address: minerva@eu-japan.gr.jp
For priority topics & more information contact minerva@eu-japan.gr.jp or visit our website.
 https://www.eu-japan.eu/events/minerva-fellowship-programmeCENTRE’S NEWS

EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 7

PRACTICAL INFORMATION ON JAPAN
WHAT’S NEW ON THE CENTRE’S WEBSITE ABOUT JAPAN?
The following reports have been recently released on:
http://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/library/publications

FINANCING SOURCES FOR EU SMES INJAPANAUTONOMOUS DRIVING SYSTEMDEVELOPMENTS IN JAPANSUCCESS STORYEU TIN OXIDEMANUFACTURER INCREASESEXPORTS TO JAPAN BY 40%
This report examines the possibilities offinancing coming from many sources ofpotential support and discusses traditional private sector sources of financethat are likely available for EU SMEs
which are already established in Japan.
It then highlights potential sources offinancial support for investment into
Japan from public and government
sectors. Moreover, this report takes alook at potential sources of investment
capital from private sector sources andfocuses on ‘non-traditional’ sources offinancial support. Lastly, this report provides various recommendations to EU
companies for a successful market entry.

This report aims to map out the current
progress of Japan in this promisingmarket. It provides a comprehensive
definition of the autonomous driving
system, and takes a close look at its
evolution. It then discusses the strategies taken by the main car producers inJapan, presenting the Japanese visionof the autonomous driving system sector. Lastly, this report provides various
recommendations to EU companies fora successful market entry.

https://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/library/publication/report-financing-sources-for-eusmes-in-japan

NEXT “ABOUT JAPAN”
WEBINARSVIRTUAL AND AUGMENTED REALITY
MARKET IN JAPAN
Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality
are still a nascent industry worldwide,
but Japan is already a primary market
and an innovator particularly in thegaming field.
This report aims to act as a guide forthis recent industry in Japan, and tolocate opportunity spaces for European
entrepreneurs and investors to connect
with the market. This report provides
a broad overview of the Japanese VR &AR sector, setting out the key activities
that Japanese VR & AR companies havebeen involved with in recent years.

Each month the EU Japan Centre

https://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/library/publication/report-virtual-and-augmentedreality-market-in-japan

https://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/library/publication/report-autonomous-driving-system-developments-in-japan

organises webinars designed to
improve EU companies’ knowledgeof conducting business in Japan.

FORTHCOMING WEBINAR:
4 December 2018
Cross-cultural: Negotiations andclosing the deal
During webinars, participants will
have the opportunity to listen to
selected experts who have agreed toshare their knowledge and expertise.
Feel free to register at:
 http://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/
eventsContinues next pagewww.keelingwalker.co.uk

Thanks to their first participation in the
EU-Japan Centre’s Nanotech mission
in 2016, Keeling & Walker - the leading
supplier of tin oxide and related materials - managed to develop several
projects with Japanese customers andwithin a year increased their sales byvolume by 40 %.
Its second participation, in 2018, allowed the company to reinforce its
visibility and existing business in Japan(the company is now working with two
Japanese trading companies).
In January 2019, its Managing Director,
Dr Dieter Guhl, whose motto can besummarized by “Play by the JapaneseRules, not by Yours!” will participate
in the Nanotech mission for the thirdtime, with the objective of establishing
Keeling & Walker’s reputation as a reliable overseas supplier.
The EU-Japan Centre wish themcontinued success in their futurecollaboration!
Interview made with Dr. DIETER
GUHL, Managing Director of Keeling& Walker, Ltd - Nanotech mission
2016 & 2018 Alumni
The full interview is available at:https://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/
library/publication/success-story-keeling-walker

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EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 8

PRACTICAL INFORMATION ON JAPAN
WHAT’S NEW ON THE CENTRE’S WEBSITE ABOUT JAPAN?
Latest updates made that might be of your interest!

B2B
If you are targeting a Japanese company,
it is essential to have a thorough understanding of the business model so thatyou can adapt your approach accordingly.
You will have to understand the pillars
on which the Japanese economic model
is built, the different types of Japanesecompanies, and the psychology of theJapanese SME itself.

SELLING THROUGH INTERMEDIARIES
If establishing a local office in Japan does
not seem like the right solution, it might
be wise to use an intermediary. But the
choice of such an intermediary should
be made with caution, as there are vastdifferences between the different typesof partners you might find.

https://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/issues/
know-your-market/b2b

SELLING THROUGH E-BUSINESS
E-Business is almost an indispensable
requirement in Japan, and is commonly
perceived as an “easy” way to enter theJapanese market. However, there are manythings which must be taken into consideration when creating a website for theJapanese consumer.

ORGANIC PRODUCE

https://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/issues/
entry-strategy/selling-through-intermediaries

https://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/issues/
entry-strategy/selling-through-e-business

The Japanese organic food market sizefor organic packaged food and beverages
in Japan in 2017 is US$597.4mn, making
it the 13th largest market in the world byvalue.

AGRICULTURAL TECHNOLOGY

https://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/sectors/
agroindustry/organic-produce

IPR
The protection of intellectual property
rights is a crucial part of any businessactivity. In Japan, there are a numberof provisions which deal with that issue(Patent Law, Copyright Law, Trademark
Law, Design Law, etc.) In fact, Japan is oneof the most advanced countries when it
comes to IPR protection.
https://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/issues/legal-regulatory-issues/ipr-system-japan
agroindustry/agricultural-technology

MARKETING
Consumers must be aware of you in orderto purchase your product. So how do you
become known on the market? Within
this high-tech nation a huge variety of
support and strategies are available foryou to use. Get to know them and learn
about the tastes of the population.
https://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/issues/operational-issues/marketing

Overall Japan has a shrinking agricultural
sector. Offering technological solutions,“agri-tech” businesses are marketing awide variety of products and services
to generally increase productivity, lower
costs, and improve product quality andavailability.
https://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/sectors/

ABOUT FISHING
With nearly 30,000 km of coastline, Japan’s
geographical conditions are very favourable for fishing. Its 2017 fishery production
totalled 4.30 million tonnes. However, theindustry on the decline and production is
falling. As a result, Japan has had to increase
its imports to meet its consumption needs.
https://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/sectors/
fishing/about-fishing

SUCCESS STORYWEAVING INTO THE JAPANESEICT MARKET WITH THINKSILICON!



http://think-silicon.com

Think Silicon, founded in Greece in2017, is specialised in developing andlicensing high-performance graphics IP
technology for ultra-low power IoT.
Thanks to the EU-Japan Centre’s 2016
ICT mission, organised on the fringes of
the Japan-Embedded technology fair,
this start-up was able to demonstrate
its technology and make relevant
contacts.
Think Silicon was even short-listed by
the fair organisers as “one of 10 cool
Discoveries” (http://think-silicon.com/
wp-content/uploads/2017/01/10-CoolDiscoveries-at-Japan-Embedded-_-EETimes.pdf) at Japan-Embedded.
Today, Think Silicon is still in close contact with several Japanese companies;
it finalised a licensing agreement with
one of them and agreed a worldwide
partnership with Synopsys Group(Synopsys Japan included).

Interview madewith Mr. ULLIMUELLER,VP Marketing& Business
Developmentat Think Silicon,
ICT mission 2016
Alumni.
The full interview is available at:https://www.eubusinessinjapan.eu/
library/publication/success-storythink-silicon-sa-sme

CENTRE’S NEWSRECRUITMENT OF HOST
COMPANIES IN JAPAN FOR
THE “VULCANUS IN JAPAN”
PROGRAMME 2019-2020“Vulcanus in Japan” is a 1-year internship programme forEuropean engineers and science-major students, managed
by the EU-Japan Centre. Every year, about 30 skilled andhighly motivated Vulcanus participants are selected to undertake industrial internships in Japan for 8 months, following an intensive 4 months of Japanese language courses andseminars. Typical internship projects include: Mechanical/
Electrical Engineering, ICT, GNSS, Chemistry, Biotechnology
and Life Sciences, and Architecture, etc. The 2019-2020
Vulcanus programme will start from September 2019 with anintensive Japanese language class, and industrial internshipfrom January to August 2020.
Companies based in Japan interested in hosting Vulcanusinterns may can contact the Vulcanus team in Japan team at
the EU-Japan Centre in Tokyo:
E-mail: VinJ@eu-japan.gr.jp, Phone: +81-(0)3-6408-0281
Application deadline: 14 December 2018.
Additional programme details and application forms for hostcompanies can be found at:

EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 9

ヴルカヌス・イン・ジャパン
2019-2020プログラム受入れ
企業様募集のお知らせ
ヴルカヌス・イン・ジャパンは、日欧産 業協力センターが主催する、EU加 盟国籍の理工系大学生・大学院生 を対象とした日本にお ける1年間の 企業研修プログラムです。実施期
間 は毎年9月から翌 年8月末、4ヶ月間 の語学研修・セミナーと8ヶ月間の企 業インターン シップから成り立ってい ます。
現在、当センターでは2019年 度プログラム（企業研修期間は2020年1月～8月）への参加企業様を募集しております。 欧州
からの優秀な学生の受入れにご興味・ご関心のある企業の皆様 は、ぜひこの機会にプログラムへの参加をご検討ください。
プログラムの詳細および募集要項は以下ホームページよりご覧になれます。
ご質問やご不明な点は、下記プログラム担当チームまでお問い
合わせください。ご応募をお待ち申し上げております。
ヴルカヌス・イン・ジャパンプログラム担当メール: VinJ@eujapan.gr.jp, 電話番号: +81-(0)3-6408-0281 申込み締切
日: 2018年12月14日
 http://www.eu-japan.eu/ja/events/host-european-trainee-japan

 http://www.eu-japan.eu/ja/events/host-european-trainee-japan“STEP IN JAPAN”: YOUR FREE OFFICE SPACE IN TOKYO… AND MUCH MORE
Are you an EU or Cosme SMEs planning to go to Japan? Then don’t miss out this opportunity.

The EU-Japan Centre offers FREE
logistical support and business assistance at our Tokyo office, for up to
one month.
What can you ask for?
• office facilities in Tokyo on theCentre’s premises , including aninternet connection and telephone• full access to meeting and seminar
facilities on the Centre’s premises;
And more!

We want to help you prepare your trip. Check out what wesuggest:• free access to sector specific reports and webinars and to athorough intercultural crash-course;• assistance in using the Enterprise Europe Network service
while in Japan;• a help desk for all information inquiries about business inJapan.
Any SME wishing to benefit from this support should contact:
StepInJapan@eu-japan.gr.jp

 http://www.eu-japan.eu/logistical-support-step-japan

By MARTA SANNA, Smartimport Srl / Sardegna mia, Beneficiary of Step in Japan - November 2018

“I applied to STEP in JAPAN in October 2018 after participating in the Organic Food Mission at Foodex,
organised by the EU-Japan Centre in March 2018. I work for an Export Management Company aiming at
promoting, selling and distributing high quality/niche Food and Beverage from the Sardegna region, in Italy.
My main objective with Step in Japan is to consolidate the relation with my existing Japanese importers andpossibly further expand my network. The EU-Japan Centre has provided a great support in this respect, adding to the high valued
logistic resources, the support by specialised HR that helped me to overcome linguistic, business and cultural barriers. To get themost from the Step in Japan, I strongly recommend, in parallel, to attend one of the Centre’s programmes targeting EU SMEs, such as‘Get Ready for Japan’ or one of the Business Missions.”

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EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 10

TRADE COMMITTEE MEPS GIVE GREEN LIGHT TO
LANDMARK EU-JAPAN TRADE AGREEMENTThe European Parliament’s Trade Committee gave its recommendation to approve the EU’s landmark trade agreementwith Japan on Monday, 5 November 2018.

The Economic Partnership Agreement between the EU and Japan (http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/press/index.cfm?id=1684)
will eventually remove almost all tariffs on goods. It opens up services, including e-commerce, maritime transport, postal
services, energy and telecommunications. It also creates common rules for bilateral trade, and common standards for the two
trading blocs.
TIMELY SIGNAL FOR FAIR, RULES-BASED TRADE

RULES ON LABOUR AND ENVIRONMENT

Trade Committee MEPs emphasised that the agreement “represents a timely signal in support of open, fair, values-based andrules-based trade, while promoting high standards, at a time ofserious protectionist challenges to the international order”.
The committee commented positively on the ambitious level
to which tariffs are being liberalised in parallel with safeguarding sensitive sectors, such as European car manufacturing for example, where EU tariffs will be phased out in sevenyears.
It also commended Japan for opening up the procurement markets, including in 54 large cities and in the railway
equipment sector, allowing EU suppliers to compete on thismarket. Another sector that trade MEPs estimate would benefit most from the deal is agriculture and the food industry,
especially wine, pork, and cheese producers.
The committee also welcomes the high level of environmental and labour protection enshrined in the deal, the commitment to the Paris Agreement to combat climate change, andencourages both parties to combat illegal logging.

Trade Committee MEPs nevertheless stressed that Japan
must ratify all relevant labour codes set by the International
Labour Organisation. The two remaining codes, whichhave not yet been ratified, are on discrimination and on
the abolition of forced labour. They also urge the European
Commission to look at how to better enforce the agreed environmental and labour standards at an upcoming review ofthe sustainable development chapter of the agreement.

For details on the most important achievements of the deal,
please read the explanatory memorandum of the draft
recommendation.

SMEs TO BENEFIT QUICKLY FROM THE AGREEMENT
The committee also urges the Commission to set up contact
points for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), which
figure for the first time in a dedicated chapter in an EU tradedeal, so that they can quickly benefit from the agreement.
78% of EU companies exporting to Japan are SMEs.
NEXT STEPSThe European Parliament, which has to give its consent
before the deal can enter into force, is expected to vote its
consent to the agreement at its December plenary session.
If the deal is approved in Parliament, it can enter into force
as soon as the Japanese Diet ratifies it.

QUOTE“Today’s positive vote on the agreement sends a strong signal for fair trade based on rules and values. Our resolution calls on bothparties to deliver on their commitments and make the most of the progressive potential of the agreement, ensuring compliancewith labour and environmental rules and contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals, ” said Pedro Silva Pereira (S&D, PT),
the rapporteur in charge of the topic.
The resolution was passed by 26 votes for, nine against, and two abstentions. The recommendation to consent was passed
by 25 votes for, ten against, and one abstention.
ABOUT THE AGREEMENTThe EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement, signed on 17 July 2018, creates a trade zone of 600 million people, and covers a third of global GDP and about 40% of global trade. It will eventually remove almost all customs duties worth roughly €1billion annually on European products and services exported to Japan.
Negotiations for a separate investment protection agreement with Japan to set up a mechanism to solve disputes, to ensure
equal and fair treatment of EU foreign direct investment in Japan and vice versa, are still ongoing.
In addition to the trade deal, the EU and Japan also signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement, which extends cooperation toareas such as energy, education, research and development, development, and the fight against climate change and terrorism. The European Parliament is required to give its consent to this agreement too.
Source: European Parliament
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20181105IPR18264/trade-committee-meps-give-greenlight-to-landmark-eu-japan-trade-agreement

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EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 11

WORLD CIRCULAR ECONOMY FORUM (WCEF) 2018 EUROPEAN INNOVATORS AT THE WCEF2018
For a second year, the European Commission is a co-organiser of the World Circular Economy Forum, which this year
took place in Yokohama, Japan between 22-24 October.

From EASME side event: technical session, discussion tables

The European Commission’s Executive Agency for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise (EASME - https://ec.europa.eu/easme/en)brought 41 delegates from 26 EU-funded projects (H2020 and LIFE) in the area of circular economy. These included 15 SMEs,
6 large companies, 13 Research organisations from 13 EU countries. The objective was to promote the role of EU funding forinnovation to support circular economy and help European companies scout potential Asian market opportunities.
The Forum was also attended by nearly 40 participants of the Circular Economy Mission to Japan and Indonesia, led by the
Directorate General for the Environment of the European Commission (http://ec.europa.eu/environment/international_issues/
missions_en.htm).

From session showcasing circular business solutions: opening by Julien
Guerrier, Director, EASMEFrom session showcasing circular business solutions: business pitch by
H2020 FiberEUse project

SHOWCASING CIRCULAR BUSINESS SOLUTIONSEASME co-organised, together with Sitra, one of the parallel sessions of the WCEF 2018 focusing on business models forcircular solutions. During the session, 12 companies delivered a pitch of 90 seconds in the plenary and then hosted discussion
tables. EASME contributed with 6 of the companies, supported by EU funding programmes Horizon 2020 and LIFE.
Julien Guerrier, Director of EASME, kick started the session with an open discussion on the state of play of circular businesssolutions by stressing the economic case of circular economy, presenting the lessons learnt from EASME experience with EU
support for SMEs, and outlined possible future actions.
The tables were very popular and busy during the 3 rounds of discussions. Concretely, contacts with potential Japaneseclients were established. All the presentation of the speakers and a video-summary are available here: https://www.sitra.fi/en/
articles/showcasing-circular-business-solutions.
NEW SERVICES FOR THE CIRCULAR ECONOMYEASME also organized a side event to the WCEF “EU going global: new services for the circular economy”. The Grand opening of the side event featured keynote speeches by Julien Guerrier, Director of EASME, Daniel Calleja, Director General of DG
Environment, and Philippe de Taxis du Poët, the General Manager of the EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation.
The side event launched the 10 new H2020 demonstration projects dedicated to new services and system transformations forthe circular economy. There was a high interest in the side event from non-EU countries including Japan, China and Canada.
The next edition of the WCEF 2019 will be in Helsinki on 5-6 June. In 2020, the Forum is planned to take place in Canada.
 https://www.sitra.fi/en/projects/world-circular-economy-forum-2018/
 https://ec.europa.eu/easme/en/news/world-circular-economy-forum-side-event-register-today

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EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 12

EU-JAPAN COOPERATION IN RESEARCH AND INNOVATIONHIGHLIGHTED IN KYOTO, 6-8 OCTOBER 2018
On 6-8 October, Mr Jean-Eric Paquet, Director-General for Research and Innovation (European Commission)
participated in the 9th EU-Japan Science Policy Forum, the 15th Science and Technology Ministers' Roundtable, and the15th Funding Agency Presidents' meeting in Kyoto, organised within the framework of the STS (Science and Technology
in Society) forum annual event.

Mr Paquet also signed, together with Dr
Michinari Hamaguchi, President of theJapan Science and Technology Agency (JST)an implementing arrangement (https://erc.
europa.eu/sites/default/files/document/
file/EC-JST_implementing_arrangement.
pdf) between the European Commission
and JST that promotes collaboration andmobility between Japanese researchers
and researchers in Europe funded throughEuropean Research Council (ERC) grants.
At the EU-Japan Science Policy Forum on
the theme "Boosting Innovation: Policy initiatives and measures in the EU and Japan",
DG Paquet gave a policy brief on new EU
Research and Innovation policy developments with aparticular focus on the proposal for the next
EU framework programme for Research andInnovation - Horizon Europe - and its innovation dimension, as well as the proposed
extended association policy.
At the S&T Ministers’ Roundtable on thetheme "The Role of Science, Technology andInnovation for Sustainable Development
Goals", the European Commission's workon and activities related to the Sustainable
Development Goals were presented. At theFunding Agency Presidents' meeting thediscussions where on 'Open Science' and
DG Paquet addressed this key priority in thecurrent EU Research and Innovation policy.

Mr Jean-Eric Paquet, Director-General for Research and Innovation (European Commission), signs,
together with Dr Michinari Hamaguchi, President of the Japan Science and Technology Agency(JST), an implementing arrangement between the European Commission and JST, Kyoto, 7 October
2018. Also present at the signing ceremony: Ms Patricia Flor, Ambassador-designate, EU Delegation
to Japan; Prof. Jean-Pierre Bourguignon, President of the European Research Council; and Mr
Masahiko Shibayama, Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, and Science and Technology, Japan.

There were also a number of meetings between DG Paquet and key research and innovation policy interlocutors in Japan, including Mr Yamawaki, Deputy Minister of MEXT; Mr
Ueyama, Executive Member of the Council for Science, Technology and Innovation (CSTI)
at the Cabinet Office; Mr Satomi, President of the Japan Society for the Promotion of
Science (JSPS); Mr Hamaguchi, President of Japan's Science and Technology Agency (JST);Mr Suematsu, President of the Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED);Mr Matsumoto, President of RIKEN; Mr Takeuchi, Vice-President of the Science Council ofJapan (SCJ); Mr Kishi, Science advisor to the Minister of Foreign Affairs; and Mr Omi, Founderand Chairman of the STS forum. The Horizon Europe proposal and it extended association
policy and co-funding possibilities in Horizon 2020 calls were some of the topics discussed.
Source: European Commission - DG Research & Innovation (RTD) http://ec.europa.eu/research/iscp/index.cfm?amp;pg=japan

Mr Jean-Eric Paquet, Director-General for Research and Innovation(European Commission), participates in the 9th EU-Japan Science
Policy Forum in Kyoto, 6 October 2018.

Mr Jean-Eric Paquet, Director-General for Research and Innovation(European Commission), participates in the 15th Science andTechnology Ministers’ roundtable in Kyoto, 7 October 2018.

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EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 13

NEW OPPORTUNITY FOR JAPANESE TALENT TO JOINEUROPE-BASED ERC TEAMSThe EU and Japan have concluded a new agreement to encourage top Japanese researchers to join teams in Europethat are funded by the European Research Council (ERC). The initiative is a collaboration with the Japan Science andTechnology Agency (JST) and is the second of its kind for the ERC with a Japanese funding body. It is the eleventh suchagreement aimed to help the ERC attract the brightest minds to Europe and to encourage cooperation.

The European Commission's Director-General for Researchand Innovation, Jean-Eric Paquet, and the President of
the JST, Michinari Hamaguchi, signed the deal during the"Science and Technology in Society" forum in Kyoto, inpresence of the Japanese Minister of Education, Culture,
Sports, Science and Technology, Masahiko Shibayama, the
ERC President, Jean-Pierre Bourguignon and the Ambassador
Designate of the European Union Delegation to Japan,
Patricia Flor.

The initiative aims to encourage high-calibre researchers,
who are supported by the JST, to make research visits to
Europe, where they will temporarily join ERC-funded researchteams.
ERC President Jean-Pierre Bourguignon said: "I am very
pleased to launch another research initiative with a key funding body in Japan – a country that takes broad investment
in R&I very seriously. Science knows no borders and the ERC
is a strong believer in more scientific collaboration, which
ultimately benefits all."The ERC, part of the EU Horizon 2020 programme, provides grants to top research talent of any nationality who are willing
to be based in Europe. So far, 32 scientists of Japanese nationality have obtained an ERC grant, hosted by universities andresearch organisation across Europe. In addition, it is estimated that around 300 team members of Japanese nationality havebeen engaged in ERC-funded projects. Following an agreement with the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) in
2015, 18 Japanese researchers, funded by JSPS, have also visited ERC teams
Source: EURAXESS https://euraxess.ec.europa.eu/worldwide/japan/new-opportunity-japanese-talent-join-europe-based-erc-teams

EU AND JAPAN DISCUSS ECONOMIC COOPERATION AT
THE 1ST HIGH-LEVEL INDUSTRIAL, TRADE AND ECONOMICDIALOGUE
On 22 October 2018, the EU and Japan held in Tokyo the 1st EU-Japan High-level Industrial, Trade and Economic Dialogue.

The discussions covered a range of strategic topics of importance for EU-Japan relations and their cooperation in addressing global challenges. The High-Level Dialogue focused onfour main areas: global trade challenges; economic transformations linked to energy, environment and climate change
issues; international investment and connectivity initiatives;
and the digital economy.
This Dialogue is a specific platform for strategic
discussions whose establishment was endorsed by the 25th
EU-Japan Summit held on 17 July 2018. The Dialogue washeld between Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry,
Mr Hiroshige Seko and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Taro
Kono, as co-chairs on the Japanese side, and the European
Commission's Vice-President for Jobs, Growth, Investment
and Competitiveness, Mr Jyrki Katainen.

Both sides confirmed the EU and Japan's commitments toaim for the early entry into force of the EU-Japan Economic
Partnership Agreement and make their utmost effort to promote the completion of respective domestic procedures by
the end of this year.

Source: European Commission  http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-18-6160_en.htm

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EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 14

REPORT ON IMPLEMENTATION OF EU FREE TRADE
AGREEMENTS
Bilateral and regional free trade agreements (FTAs) are major drivers of economic growth. Through harnessing
globalisation, they bring important benefits for the people and companies in the European Union (EU) and in ourpartner countries. Free trade agreements are major contributors to the EU's external trade performance as they open
up new markets for exporters and offer a more predictable, rules-based business environment beneficial to consumer
choice and competition.

In line with the first report publishedin November 2017 this second annual
report on the implementation of free
trade agreements is meant to increaseawareness and transparency on how
the Commission implements free trade
agreements.

The report should enable the other EU
institutions, EU Member States, civilsociety, business and everyone with astake in EU trade policy to scrutiniseand debate how the EU is applying its
free trade agreements.

The present report provides an updateof the Commission's activities in the implementation of free trade agreements
and summarises the main developments regarding 35 major EU trade
agreements with 62 partner countries
that were applied at least for several
months in 2017.

Source: European Commission  http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2018/october/tradoc_157468.pdf

COMMISSION WORK PROGRAMME 2019: DELIVERING ON
PROMISES AND PREPARING FOR THE FUTURE.
The 2019 Work Programme focuses on just 15 new initiatives, and an additional 10 new REFIT evaluations, to review
existing legislation and ensure it is still fit for purpose.

To ensure a focus on delivery, the Commission Work Programme identifies 187 priority
pending proposals for adoption by the Parliament and Council before the European elections.
The Commission also suggests withdrawing or repealing 17 pending proposals or existinglaws. The Commission has already tabled all the legislative proposals needed to deliver on theten priorities of the Juncker Commission. Together with the European Parliament and Council,
the Commission has found agreement on around half of these proposals so far, and a further
twenty percent are well advanced in the legislative process.
Source: European Commission
 https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/cwp_2019_explained_factsheet_en_.pdf€191 MILLION TO PROMOTE AGRI-FOOD PRODUCTS
AT HOME AND ABROAD
The 2019 programmes for the promotion of EU agri-food products will focus primarily on markets outside the EU withthe highest potential for growth.

The European Commission adopted the 2019 promotion policy work programme on 14 November, with €191.6 million to bemade available for programmes selected for EU co-financing - an increase of €12.5 million compared with 2018.
€89 million will be allocated to campaigns in high growth countries such as Canada, China, Colombia, Japan, Korea, Mexico, andthe United States.
Some of the money will be earmarked to the promotion of specific products, like table olives.
Phil Hogan, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development said: "Europe is the world's top producer of quality food anddrink. I am happy to say that, with an even greater emphasis on promotion efforts in 2019, we will increase awareness of this fact
both in the EU and in third countries with high growth potential, to the benefit of our farmers and agri-food producers. Our increasing number of trade agreements means more opportunities for our producers to tap into and the Commission stands fully behindthem to support them in the promotion and export of their products."
Source: European Commission

 http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-18-6404_en.htm

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EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 15

EU GATEWAY | BUSINESS AVENUES TAKES CONSTRUCTION
AND BUILDING COMPANIES TO JAPAN IN 2019
EU Gateway | Business Avenues, the programme that has helped European companies expand into Asia for over 25
years, confirmed an EU-funded mission to Japan in the construction & building sector on 12-15 November 2019.

The market revenue of Japan’s construction industry is worth approximately €406
billion. Investment in public constructionis €170 billion and €244 billion for privatecommercial construction. Up to 40
selected companies will travel to Tokyoand exhibit at the Japan Home & Building
Show, the largest conglomerate exhibition for housing and building industry
in the Land of the Rising Sun. The show
has 40 years of history and reputationfrom domestic professionals. It attracts awide range of visitors from the fields ofhome building, construction, interior andexterior for commercial facilities, and from the sphere of infrastructure and buildings, thus being the perfect opportunity toengage with targeted professionals during the B2B meetings.
There are several eligible subsectors for construction andbuilding technologies. European companies specialised insmart grids, smart and green building technologies,
machinery sector, building materials and building installation
are welcome to apply for this market-scoping mission.

This mission includes a wide range of business services, fromlogistical support to business matchmaking. Dedicated teams
in Europe and Asia will guide participating companies to help
them define their business strategy in Asia through coaching
and market intelligence. Promotion through local media andpre-arranged business meetings with potential partners inAsia are also part of the package. Participants will also attend
a site visit to get a better grasp of the market, as well as a
networking event organised by the EU.

European companies can apply online at https://eu-gateway.eu.
For more information on business missions and application procedures, contact: coaching.network@eu-gateway.eu
 https://www.eu-gateway.eu/

EIB NEW COOPERATION WITH THE JAPAN BANK FOR
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION (JBIC) AND WITH THE
NIPPON EXPORT AND INVESTMENT INSURANCE (NEXI)
On 22 October, at the Japan-EU High-Level Dialogue for Industry, Trade and Economy, the European Investment Bank
(EIB) signed two Memoranda of Understanding with the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), represented
by its Director General of New Energy and Power Finance Department I, Mr Yutaka Inaba; and with the Nippon Export
and Investment Insurance (NEXI), represented by its Executive Officer Tetsuya Koizumi.

Both Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) aim to promote cooperation between the parties to support sustainable economic
and social development and to create business opportunities for Japan and the EU both within and outside Europe.
These new partnerships will foster stronger bilateral cooperation between Japan and the EU, in line with the conclusion of theJuly 2018 Japan-EU Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) and the Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA). They will enhancecooperation, knowledge and expertise sharing between the institutions in areas of common interest such as innovation andenvironmental conservation amongst others.
Source: EIB
http://www.eib.org/en/infocentre/press/releases/all/2018/2018-264-eib-new-cooperation-with-the-japan-bank-for-international-cooperation-jbic-and-with-the-nippon-export-and-investment-insurance-nexi.htm

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EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 16

JAPAN-EU LEADERS MEETING
On Thursday, October 18, Mr Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan, during a visit to Brussels to attend the ASEM Summit
Meeting, held a Leaders Meeting with H.E. Mr Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission.
The overview of the meeting is as follows.

1. Japan-EU Relations(1) Prime Minister Abe expressed his
respect for the EU’s leadership as chairof the ASEM Summit, and his hope fora fruitful discussion on various agendas
during the Summit.
(2) Both leaders confirmed that they willcontinue to cooperate towards an early
entry into force of the Japan-EU EPA and
SPA, signed on the occasion of the 25th
Japan-EU Summit Meeting - Photo: Cabinet Public Relations Office
Japan-EU Summit Meeting held in Tokyo
Prime Minister shaking hands with the President of the European Commission
Photo: Cabinet Public Relations Officein July this year. They shared their views
on making utmost effort to complete their respective domestic procedures by the end of thisyear for the conclusion and application of the agreements.
2. The United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the EU(1) President Junker explained to Prime Minister Abe the discussions on the United Kingdom’s
withdrawal from the EU, held during the European Council on October 17 and 18.
(2) In this regard, after expressing his concern over the current status of negotiations, Prime
Minister Abe reiterated Japan’s stance that it is essential to ensure transparency, predictability and legal stability by establishing the transition period in order to minimize the negative
impact on Japanese businesses in the EU.
3. Both leaders exchanged their views on other issues such as the world economy, and shared
the view on Japan-EU collaboration for WTO reform.
Source: Mission of Japan to the European Union

 https://www.mofa.go.jp/erp/ep/page6e_000142.html

3RD EUROPEAN BIOTECH AND
PHARMA PARTNERING CONFERENCE,
OSAKA
Since 2016, the EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation organises
annually the “European Biotech and Pharma Partnering Conference,
Osaka”, a one-to-one business matching event in cooperation with Osaka
Bio Headquarters.

Osaka Bio Headquarters is a prefectural industry-academia-government collaboration system which aims to promote thefurther development of life sciences industry in Osaka.
Both organisations successfully held the 3rd Partnering Conference on 9 October 2018, the day before BioJapan.
THE HIGHLIGHT BY NUMBERS:• One–to-one meetings organised: 278• Participating companies/organisations: 118• From Japan: 51• From the EU: 67 (from 15 countries • Austria,
Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,
Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland,
Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Spain, UK)• 206 participants in total

At the event, the EU-Japan Centre
for Industrial Cooperation and Osaka
Prefectural Government, a secretariat of
Osaka Bio Headquarters, concluded aMemorandum of Understanding (MoU) for
collaboration in the life science industry.
This MoU will strengthen the twoorganisations long-term relationship.

On 8 October 2019, the business conference will be held in Osaka again (tentative). Save the date and take advantageof this great opportunity to enter theJapanese market!
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EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 17

CEREMONY FOR THE SIGNING OF A MEMORANDUM OF
UNDERSTANDING
BETWEEN THE ENERGYAGENCY.FUKUSHIMA (EAF) AND THE RENEWABLE ENERGY HAMBURG
CLUSTER AGENCY (REH) FOR COOPERATING IN THE FIELD OF RENEWABLE ENERGY
Fukushima Prefecture is making a lot of efforts and has implemented various measures to become a front-runner inrenewable energy.

As part of these efforts, in April 2017 the EnergyAgency.
FUKUSHIMA was established to help foster the developmentof new technologies in the field of renewable energy,
create new business models, carry out business matching
and to widen the network between companies. New business projects are continuously created through developing
new markets and supporting cooperation with foreigncompanies and organisations.
Recently a Memorandum of Understanding for cooperatingin the field of renewable energy has been signed between
the EnergyAgency.FUKUSHIMA and the Renewable Energy
Hamburg Cluster Agency (REH) – an organisation supporting
renewable energy – of the German state of Hamburg, a prospering port city, which has a wind energy industry cluster
and has been holding a trade fair for wind power generationin recent years.
The ceremony was held on Friday 7 September at the Ministry of Economy, Transport and Innovation of the German stateof Hamburg. Mr Yasuhiro Hattori (EnergyAgency.FUKUSHIMA) and Mr Jan Rispens (Renewable Energy Hamburg Cluster
Agency) signed the Memorandum of Understanding during the ceremony, which was also attended by the Bureau Directorof the Ministry of Economy, Transport and Innovation of the state of Hamburg, Mr Martin Köppen, the Director General of theCommerce, Industry and Labour Department of Fukushima Prefectural Government, Mr Akiyoshi Hashimoto, and the Consul
General of the Japanese Consulate-General in Hamburg, Ms Kikuko Katō.
The aim of the Memorandum of Understanding is to further promote and expand the cooperation between the State ofHamburg and Fukushima Prefecture in the field of renewable energy. Both parties especially agreed on regularly exchanging information and report the latest developments in the fields of wind power and hydrogen energy, and to jointly organise
workshops and seminars.
 http://energy-agency-fukushima.com/en/

PARTNERING EVENT IN TOKYO – CALL FOR SPEAKERS REGENERATIVE MEDICINE CROSSROAD IN TOKYO #9
28 JANUARY 2019, TOKYO, JAPANAn opportunity to meet business partners in Japan.

The deadline is approaching rapidly
for the calling-for-speakers process forthe ninth edition of the Regenerative
Medicine Crossroad® in Tokyo(RMCR#9).
The event is meant to provide a“speaker’s corner” for those who seek
partnerships with Japanese companies
for the purpose of developing regenerative medical products in their pipelines
or their promising technology seeds inJapan.

 https://firm.or.jp/en

The half-day session will consist of
concurrent oral presentations andmultiple one-on-one partnering
meetings, followed by a networking
mixer at the end of the day.
The organisers encourage those whoare engaged in clinical development(including pre-clinical stage) in regenerative medicine, cell therapy, and genetherapy, and looking for opportunities
in Japan, to come to Tokyo and directlydiscuss businesses with local company
representatives.

Deadline for the Preliminary
Registration: 7 December 2018 (JST)Expected number of speakers for the
event: 3-6 entities
Expected number of event attendees:
50-100 business professionals andexperts from the regenerative medicine
and gene/cell therapy sector of Japan.
Venue: Nihonbashi Life Science Building
https://www.nihonbashi-lifescience.jp/en,
Nihonbashi, Tokyo, Japan.
Contact: Fuyu Mori, RMCR Organiser
info-tf@firm.or.jp

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SUCCESSFUL INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT) BUSINESSMISSION FROM CEE COUNTRIES TO JAPAN
Between 15 and 19 October 2018 JETRO (Japan External Trade Organization)organised a sector mission to Japan focused on Internet of Things (IoT).

Asteria IoT Future Lab. tour

Seminar at CEATEC

As a result of cooperation between
JETRO CEE offices (Warsaw, Prague andBudapest), the delegation consisted of
10 companies (6 Polish, 3 from Czech
Republic, 1 Hungarian) representing various IoT segments: smart grid,cyber security, device management,anti-money laundering (AML) services,
software development, data scienceand machine learning, blockchain,
design and production of ultra-low
power industrial IoT devices, network
traffic monitoring and security solutions, augmented data analytics, andindustrial and energy IoT solutions.
On the first day, a business matchmaking event with Japanese companies andan IoT seminar were organised at JETRO
HQ. The seminar, hosted by JETRO’s
contracted specialists, provided thedelegates with an insight into the IoT
sector trends in Japan.

In addition, JETRO members provided
a comprehensive introduction to theirservices related to support for setting
up business in Japan and showed thedelegates around the Invest Japan
Business Support Center (IBSC) –JETRO’s facilities that serve as businessincubators and temporary office for
new companies entering the Japanesemarket.
The programme also included an official
reception at the Czech Embassy, where
delegates met with representatives ofJapanese businesses and institutions.
In the following days, the delegation
visited the internationally well-known
IoT trade show CEATEC (https://www.
ceatec.com/en) that was held from 1619 October at Makuhari messe.

Delegation members during visit at Asteria IoT Future Lab.

At CEATEC, the IoT mission members
had an opportunity to present theircompanies and technologies at a seminar, while JETRO made a comprehensive introduction of the CEE IoT market.
Throughout the week, the mission’s
participants also participated in an IoTStudy Tour organised by JETRO and its
partners. The tour started with an eventat the BroadBand Tower Inc. organised in cooperation with the Internet
Association of Japan. On the following
day delegates visited the NTT Data
event. Both events consisted of shortpresentations and networking. During
the Infoteria IoT Future Lab visit, mission
participants were introduced to thelatest IoT technologies in the Japanesemarket. Finally, on the last day, thedelegation had a unique opportunity tovisit Japanese tech giants, such as KDDI,
Source: JETRO Prague
IIJ and Softbank.

NTT data event

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JAPANESE HYDROGEN MISSION TO THE NETHERLANDSAs Chief Representative of the City of Yokohama, Mr Takeshi Tamai went on a hydrogen mission to the Netherlands
initiated by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
in Japan in early October.

First, Mr Tamai attended a Hydrogen Symposium in
Groningen that was held by the City of Groningen and had
the chance to present to the audience Yokohama’s efforts indeveloping hydrogen technology and integrateing it
efficiently into every-day life. To illustrate the development ofhydrogen technologies, the event included not only expert
reports, but also on-site visits to some of the spots wherehydrogen technology had already been successfully introduced into the city’s infrastructure.
In total about 100 attendants, some of them representativesof Japanese companies related to the energy and technology fields, like Chiyoda Cooperation or Tokyo Gas, as well
as researching institutes, universities and local companies
took part in this event. To the question what kind of energy
education the City of Yokohama offers, Mr Tamai explained
that, in addition to the topic of sustainable energy being implemented in the middle-school and high-school education,
the citizens were also regularly approached directly to raiseawareness regarding sustainable energy.

Mr Takeshi Tamai, Chief
Representative of The City of
Yokohama Europe Representative
Office.

During this mission Mr Tamai also had the opportunity tovisit the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management in
The Hague to discuss the political approach to implementing
sustainable technology in the country, which is overall not toforce companies, but to encourage them with incentives.

From The Hague, the mission went on toRotterdam, where Mr Tamai visited theInnovation Expo with the topic ‘Global
Challenges and Dutch Solutions’.
This Expo shows every type of the latest renewable energy
related technology, including swimming buses and flying
cars and matches interested parties.
In the future, Mr Tamai wants to learn even more from
European best practice examples and foster the exchange ofinternational knowledge.

Source: The City of Yokohama Europe Representative Office 		 http://www.yokohama-city.de

BIOJAPAN & REGENERATIVE MEDICINE JAPAN 2018 REPORT
Featuring a large-scale exhibition, an extensive seminar schedule, and a patented online partnering system, these twinned
events are uniquely positioned within Asia as a platform for bringing together key players in the bio and regen-med fields.

Almost two months have passed since the successful 2018
iterations of BioJapan and Regenerative Medicine Japan.
The event had more visitors, exhibitors, and business meetings than ever before as a diverse range of organisations fromall over the globe came together in Yokohama for the event.
Total visitors amounted 16.309 (104% of last year's total),
participating countries: 34 and 10.075 one on one businessdiscussions held (117% of last year's total)

BIOJAPAN & REGENERATIVE MEDICINE JAPAN 2019

BioJapan offers a good opportunity for EU companies to forge
relationships with new partners in Japan and Asia. 76% of the
1.108 organizations participating in this year’s partnering are
based in Asia and Oceania, and 67% in Japan specifically.
The event also boasts a solid roster of attendees from aroundthe world, thanks in part to many returning foreign pavilions
and clusters. (e.g. delegations from Europe, the US, and Asia)

BIOJAPAN ORGANISING COMMITTEE:• Regenerative Medicine Japan 2019:• Forum for Innovative Regenerative Medicine (FIRM)• Japan Bioindustry Association (JBA)• TB Communication Design, Inc.

BioJapan 2019 will be organised from 9 to 11 October 2019 in
PACIFICO Yokohama, Japan.
The partnering system will be open for registration in July
2019.
Breakdown of the data and detailed participants informationfrom previous year can be provided by the organiser.

 https://www.ics-expo.jp/biojapan/en/CENTRE’FROMJAPANS NEWS

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11TH KAWASAKI INTERNATIONAL ECO-TECH FAIR AND
KAWASAKI INNOVATION FAIR CREATING THE FUTURE
7-8 FEBRUARY 2019, KAWASAKI CITY, JAPANKawasaki City* in Kanagawa Prefecture (Japan) will hold the “11th Kawasaki International Eco-Tech Fair” and the“Kawasaki Innovation Fair Creating the Future” from 7-8 February 2019.

The “Kawasaki International Eco-Tech Fair” aims to promote contributions to theinternational society through cross-industrial exchange and technology transfer inthe field of the environment by disseminating, to Japan and the wider world, theexcellent technologies and know-how in the environmental field that have beendeveloped in Kawasaki City, where people have been suffering of environmental
pollutions in the past, and simultaneously providing an opportunity for businessmatching between exhibitor companies/organisations and domestic/foreign companies. Many visitors from overseas are expected, with approximately 180 people
from 40 countries, including China, Korea, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, and otherregions, that took part in the last fair.

A wide range of state-of-the-art
technologies are exhibited during thefairs, from environmental technologies
including air and water treatments, torenewable energies such as hydrogenenergy, solar power, and biomass.
For inquiries: please send an email to
info@kawasaki-eco-tech.jp
https://www.kawasaki-eco-tech.jp/
english* Kawasaki City is a government-designated city with a population of 1.5 million, located close to Tokyo and conveniently accessible from
Tokyo International Airport (Haneda Airport).

SEMINAR ON "TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE AND ITS IMPACT
ON THE LABOUR MARKET"On 15 November, an academic seminar on "Technologicalchange and its impact on the labour market" was held at
the Takigawa Memorial Hall, Kobe University. This event was
jointly organised with the European Economic and Social
Committee (EESC).

Moderated by Professor Masahiko Yoshii (Vice-President andJean Monnet Chair) the seminar introduced AI technologies and the impact on labour markets, with comparisons
between Japan and Europe. From Kobe University, Professor
Kazufumi Yugami (Social Science Department, Organisationof Advanced Science and Technology) and Professor Zhi-Wei
Luo (Graduate School of System Informatics) gave talks ontheir research in the areas of labour economics and robotics.
The seminar was attended by over 50 people including
researchers and students of Kobe University, and was
followed by a lively Q&A session.
Kobe University has been strengthening cooperation with
the EESC since the 2005 founding of the EU Institute in Japan,
Kansai (EUIJ-Kansai), an EU-funded consortium of Kobe
University, Kwansei Gakuin University, and Osaka University.

Through the EUIJ-Kansai scheme, Kobe University members
have enjoyed internship experiences at the EESC.
On 10 March 2014, the 4th Kobe University Brussels European
Centre (KUBEC) Symposium "Globalisation of Higher
Education from the Perspective of EU-Japan Collaboration"
was jointly organised with the EESC in Brussels. This year’s
seminar marks the next stage for collaboration between
Kobe University and the EESC to exchange our knowledge
and experiences related to the EU-Japan relationship.
 http://www.kobe-u.ac.jp/en/NEWS/event/2018_11_15_02.html

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EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 21

BRING INNOVATION TO BUSINESS BY ESTABLISHING A R&D
CENTRE IN IBARAKI PREFECTURE
Ibaraki is home to a concentration of national public and private research institutions, and highly skilled personnel.

One-third (29) of Japan’s research institutions are located in the Tsukuba Science City in southern Ibaraki.
One in ten residents in this area holds a Ph.D. Multiple research institutions offer collaboration research
programmes or shared access to facilities.
 https://www.invest.indus.pref.ibaraki.jp/en

A REGIONAL BUSINESS CONFERENCE (RBC) WILL BE HELDIN IBARAKI ON 19-20 FEBRUARY 2019
The event will be an opportunity for innovation during which Ibaraki will
uncover participating company’s R&D potential. The conference will featurebusiness
matching opportunities with local companies, and tours to world classinstitutes located in Tsukuba will be organised. The Governor of Ibaraki will
personally attend the event and have a presentation of Ibaraki.
 https://www.invest.indus.pref.ibaraki.jp/it-will-be-held-regional-business-conference-in-ibaraki-feburuary-19-to-20-2019

SUBSIDIES FOR FOREIGN-AFFILIATED COMPANIES IN
IBARAKI ARE CURRENTLY AVAILABLE
Ibaraki Prefecture has established a new support system in 2018 to attract
and promote foreign-affiliated companies in the prefecture. Please consider
taking advantage of this incentive to expand your business.
 https://www.invest.indus.pref.ibaraki.jp/en/support-system

On the left: Kazuhiko Oigawa, Governor of Ibaraki
Prefecture

NEDO AND HITACHI TO START CLOUD-BASED ADVANCED
ENERGY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM DEMONSTRATIONPROJECT IN SLOVENIA
The project aims to realise energy services business, including autonomous operation during power grid failure.

New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) and Hitachi, Ltd. will expand the Smart Community
Demonstration Project being carried out jointly with ELES, d.o.o., Slovenia’s state-owned electricity
transmission system operator, and will start demonstration of a cloud-based Advanced Energy Management System (AEMS)
for the first time from October 2018.
In advance of this, NEDO, Slovenia’s Ministry of Economic Development and Technology, Ministry of Infrastructure, and ELES
d.o.o. agreed to joint implementation of the expanded project scope and signed the revised version of Memorandum of
Cooperation (MoC), Minutes of Meeting (MoM) and Memorandum of Understanding (MoU),
respectively, on 24 September.
On the same occasion, Hitachi, Ltd., which is NEDO’s entrusted party, and ELES, d.o.o. signed the revised version of
Implementation Document (ID).
Under the expanded project scope, NEDO and Hitachi aim to establish an energy service business for large consumers andelectricity retailers by implementing and demonstrating a cloud-based Advanced Energy Management System (AEMS) which
is linked with Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) installed on the consumer side, for example, in factories, buildings andhomes, and which prevents power outages through autonomous operation during grid failure, ensures the quality of factory electricity through voltage dips mitigation measures, and provides frequency control to electricity transmission system
operator.
Source: New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO)

 http://www.nedo.go.jp/english/news/AA5en_100394.html

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JEAN MONNET SEMINAR SERIESINTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
On 25 September 2018, the Jean Monnet Seminar Series International
Conference "The Future of Regional Integration in the Globalized World" washeld at the Fukuoka Convention Centre, co-organised in parallel with the sessionof the World Social Science Forum (WSSF) 2018.

The World Social Science Forum series is one of the International Social Science
Council’s (ISSC) flagship activities, and the international conference is held
every three years. The fourth World Social Science Forum was hosted by Kyushu
University in Fukuoka, Japan under the main theme of “Security and Equality for
Sustainable Futures” over the course of four days. It was the first time an Asian institution hosted the Forum.
The JM International Conference was conducted in English only, without interpretation. Approximately 50 participants including researchers and college students fromaround the world gathered.
In addition, this session was also open to the general public who pre-registered.
Participants listened ardently to the latest presentations given by outstanding EU
researchers who are active in the world.
Prof. Kenji Iwata, Director of Kyushu University EU Centre, delivered the opening
remarks. Regarding the title of the session, he noted that the future of global integration could be seen through the gathering and sharing of academic knowledge in thesocial sciences on the research in regional integration, which has been deepening andwidening to cover the main areas of the earth, namely the EU, ASEAN, and NAFTA.
As a keynote speaker from Europe, Mr Jacques Pelkmans, research fellow at theCentre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) and a member of the Netherlands
Scientific Council for Government Policy (WRR), made a presentation. He spoke on
the theme of "The Future of European Integration".
He concluded that the turmoil in the EU—such as BREXIT and the euro crisis—left
a big scar, but the media attention actually led to voters getting to know more
about the EU.
Prof. Kazushi Shimizu of the Faculty of Economics at Kyushu University made apresentation on “The Economic Integration of ASEAN in the World Economy” asanother keynote lecturer from the Japanese side.

After that, two paper presenters publicly selected by the Scientific Program
Committee (SPC) of WSSF, Mr Osei
Oteng-Asante and Ms Mare Ushkovska,
made presentations, respectively.
After the presentations, a question andanswer session was held.
In the following programme, at the opening ceremony of the WSSF held in themain hall of the venue, a formal ceremony
was held under the presence of their
Imperial Highnesses the Crown Prince
and Princess, with around 1000 people inattendance. At the reception party,
presenters of the conference gatheredfrom all over the world and exchanged
their opinions freely. At the end of thefirst day of the WSSF Conference, theJean Monnet Seminar Series International
Conference ended in success.
 http://eu.kyushu-u.ac.jp/jmcoe.html

DEMONSTRATION PROJECT IN GERMANY
Large-Scale Hybrid power storage system starting to operate in November

Germany aims to shift more than 80% of its domestic electric power demand to renewable energy by 2050 under its“Energiewende” energy transition policy by actively introducing renewable energy resources such as wind and solar power.
Because of the recent expansion of renewable energy use inGermany, conventional power plants for maintaining electric
power supply stability are falling into disuse. Consequently,
there is a rapidly growing need for technology to replace therole of such power plants.
To address this arising challenge, NEDO and the Ministry
for Economics, Labor and Transport in the state are working together with EWE-Verband, an association managing
the electric power supply to 17 districts and four cities in
Niedersachsen, and EEW Holding.

The four parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) for the project on 19 March 2017.
At the same time, Hitachi Chemical Co., Ltd.; Hitachi Power
Solutions Co., Ltd.; and NGK Insulators, Ltd., Japanese companies commissioned by NEDO, and EWE AG, Niedersachsen’s
energy provider cooperating with the German parties, teamed
up and concluded an implementation document (ID) to officially launch the project. The project started in April 2017.
Following the City of Varel granting permission to establish alarge-scale hybrid power storage system, the facility foundation construction and machine assembly were completed,and thereafter, a commissioning has been finished and hence
operation will commence from 1 November 2018.

Source: New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO)  http://www.nedo.go.jp/english/news/AA5en_100396.html

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EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 23

JMCOE-Q EU STUDY SUMMER COURSEThe JMCoE-Q EU Study Summer Course was held at the National Institute for Youth Education in Aso on 2-5 September,over a 4-day, 3-night schedule. 23 students (19 undergraduates and 4 graduate students), including 2 Chinese and
1 Malaysian, gathered from 6 universities from all over Japan. Prior to the programme, the participants enjoyed abarbecue and the majestic views of Daikanbo in the fine weather as they deepened their friendships with each other.

This EU Study Summer Course was held
for the first time in 3 years since thefinal implementation was conducted by
EUIJ-Kyushu in 2015, bringing the total
number to 6 times.
The field of lectures covered a wide
range including economics, law, politics, society, and culture. It was expected that general and basic knowledge
about the EU would be acquired by
the participants having completed thiscourse. Professor Mark Fenwick gave alecture in English.

On the last day, the main programme"A Simulation of the European Council"of this summer course was held. In thisprogramme, each student represented
one of the 28 EU member states anddiscussed their standpoint on the issues
being debated and had to reach an
agreement with the other EU member
states. The theme for this year's debate
was "Responsibility of the Member
States on the EU Immigration Policy".

Despite limited preparation time,
students formed their opinions whilegathering information about the situation of immigrant refugees and thegovernments’ responses to it and wereable to exchange enthusiastic questions
and answers with the lecturers. The
European Council simulation proceeded with various proposals for effective
policies to solve problems from thestandpoint of each member country.
The discussion developed around thesearch for an EU-wide response towarda peaceful resolution, whit the chairperson playing a key role.
Participating students gave their impressions, such as: "Students gatheredfrom various universities, grades, andmajors”; “The ‘Simulation of the European

Council’ on the final day was interesting.
It was a very good experience that I wassomehow able to form my presentation
with the help of students from other universities for the presentation on the finalday”; and “It was a very meaningful timeto interact with lecturers who are experts
in EU research.”
Finally, Advisor Hachiya concluded
that, “This will be a valuable chance toconsider the situation of the EU from adeeper point of view.” All students who
participated received a certificate when
they completed the EU Study Summer
Course. There was a deep sense of accomplishment and satisfaction by those
who took part in the course.
 http://eu.kyushu-u.ac.jp/jmcoe.html- Participants: 23 students (Kyushu University (12), Toyo Eiwa Jogakuin (6), Kyoto University (1), Osaka University (1), Kwansei
Gakuin University (2), The University of Kitakyushu (1))- Lecturers: Yuichi Morii (Professor, University of Tokyo), Mark Fenwick (Professor, Kyushu University), Haruka Takasaki (Lecturer,
Toyo Eiwa Jogakuin University), Ms. Hachiya (Kyushu University EU Centre Advisor)

SPOTTED PUBLICATION
The monthly magazine “Highlighting Japan” is published by the Japanese Government to help readers better understandJapan today.
Latest issues topics: in October - “From Meiji to the Present: Looking Back on 150 Years of Progress”, and in November - “Living
In Tune with Nature: Japan’s Connection to Wood”
Source: Cabinet Office, Government of Japan http://www.gov-online.go.jp/eng/publicity/book/hlj/index.html

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NEWS

EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 24

BAVARIAN AND EUROPEAN COMPANIES WITH
BIOM ON JAPAN MISSION
This year BioM accompanied two groups of entrepreneurs to Japan. The programme included
the EU-Japan BioPharma Partnering Conference in Osaka on 9 October, followed by BioJapan in
Yokohama on 10-12 October. An important part of the programme was the official extension of thecooperation agreement between BioM and Osaka Bio Headquarters until 2022.

Together, the cooperation partners want to further promoteand strengthen the regions of Bavaria and Kansai (Osaka,
Kobe, Kyoto) in the field of biotechnology and life sciences.
Prof. Horst Domdey, Managing Director of BioM, greatly appreciates the cooperation: "The Kansai Region is a traditionallyinnovative hub and has produced outstanding personalities suchas this year's Nobel Laureate in Medicine, Prof. Tasuku Honjo. We
are very delighted to be able to continue the valuable collaboration with Osaka as a central player of the Kansai Region".
Dr Kazuhide Nomura, Associate Director, Northern Osaka
Bio Medical Cluster added: "We are very pleased to extend thecooperation agreement with BioM for the second time. Together,
we regularly provide business matching opportunities for eachregion's companies. We hope that this German-Japanese cooperation will lead to long-term success in the life science field".
At the Partnering Conference in Osaka, 67 representatives ofEuropean companies from 15 countries met with 51 Japanesecompanies for a total of 278 one-on-one meetings to explore
possible cooperation opportunities. Within the EIT Healthproject Start.Smart.Japan (https://www.bio-m.org/?id=332),
co-organised by Biocat (https://www.biocat.cat/en), BioM
accompanied nine Bavarian SMEs to the conference, threeof them from Bavaria. The Osaka Partnering Conference wasdeveloped three years ago by BioM together with the Osaka
BioHeadquarters partner cluster and the Osaka Prefecture,later supported by bioXclusters (https://bioxclusters.eu). In themeantime, the EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation has
become the major organisational partner.
After the Osaka event, BioM subsequently accompanied nine
Bavarian companies to Yokohama for BioJapan where BioM
represented the Bavarian Biotechnology Cluster at the German
Pavilion. This largest trade fair and partnering event forbiotechnology in Asia offered further opportunities to makecontacts and initiate partnerships.

Prof. Horst Domdey, Managing Director BioM with Dr Kazuhide
Nomura, Associate Director Northern Osaka Bio Medical Cluster, atthe signing of the cooperation agreement’s extension

Bavarian exhibitors at the German Pavilion at BioJapan 2018

Dr Maria Lamottke, President of the Board of Directors of Bicoll, came as a participant of Start.Smart.Japan to Yokohama.
The project has been specially developed for start-ups, scale-ups and SMEs whose goal is to enter the Japanese life sciencemarket. Lamottke was very positive about the fair: "For the first time, we were able to hold in-depth discussions with Japanese
partners, which could only take place at BioJapan. BioM's preparation for this was excellent."
Dr Edgar Fenzl, Managing Director of FGK Clinical Research GmbH, was represented as sub-exhibitor at BioJapan and was very
pleased with the development of the fair: "Compared to recent years, there are more international participations at this year's
BioJapan. The Japanese representatives are also more open-minded towards foreign companies."
You can find out more about BioM's international projects at:

 https://www.bio-m.org/en/our-services/international-affairs

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NEWS

EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 25

MOSHI MOSHI! AMBASSADOR OF JAPAN IN BELGIUMSEDUCES THE WALLOON BRABANT REGION
On 8 November, the CCI Walloon Brabant in Nivelles received H.E. Mr Hajime Hayashi, Ambassador of Japan to Belgium
welcomed by Chairmen René Branders & Philippe Suinen.

Again, it was a very inspiring International network event together with Belgian businessmen all interested in developing
their commercial relations with this very promising country.
Thanks to the coming Economic Partnership Agreement(EPA) with the EU, the relations between these two parts of
the world will increase greatly.
The audience was pleased with the positive and warm speechof H .E. M. Hayashi followed by the ones of the BelgianLuxembourg Chamber of Commerce in Japan (BLCCJ),
the Belgium-Japan Association & Chamber of Commercein Brussels (BJA), and the EU-Japan Centre for Industrial
Cooperation.

Entrepreneurs were fascinated by the brilliant testimonials of field experiences given by Mr Luc Gellens from Umicore and
Mr Michael van Dorpe from Village Island in Japan that joined the event via Skype. The organisers would like to express their
gratitude to Mr Wim Eynatten and his presentation on the new Belgium-Japan Double Tax Treaty, to Alessandro Perna and theInternship for students “Vulcanus Programme” and to Mr Thomas Ronse (AWEX) for the very clear and pleasant presentationof the commercial relationships between Japan and Belgium. And to close this very successful event: a tasteful lunch withJapanese specialties and a fruitful networking between all participants!
 http://www.ccibw.be/actualite/moshimoshi-lambassadeur-japon-seduit-brabant-wallon/

GREEK BUSINESS MISSION TO JAPANThe Office of the Economic and Commercial Affairs of the Greek Embassy in Tokyo, on the occasion of the second visitof the German-Greek Chamber of Industry and Commerce and the Greek-Asian Business Council (Tokyo, 19 September2018) organised B2B meetings for a group of Greek companies that wish to export their products to Japan.

The companies are specialised in innovative Greek
products: organic extra virgin olive oil with extremely
low acidity, 10ml sachet servings of extra virgin olive
oil and extra virgin olive oil with balsamic vinegar,
plum olives processed by traditional methods, herbs
honey & thyme herbs and flowers honey not subject to any chemical or thermal treatment, premium
Corinthian raisins (considered to be a superfood) richin anti-oxidants, minerals and dietary fibres, crunchy
oat clusters in boxes, cups for snacks and cereal bars with honey, oat flakes with dried Corinthian raisins.
Due to the high interest from Japanese importers, the B2B meetings were hosted at the premises of the German Chamber ofCommerce and Industry in Japan.			
Source: Office of Economic and Commercial Affairs of the Embassy of Greece in Japan

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NEWS

EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 26

LITHUANIA AND JAPAN STRENGTHEN AND EXPAND TIESIN MEDICAL RESEARCH AND INNOVATION
September and October were quite busy months for Lithuanian and Japanese business and research circles.

On 25 September, already the 5th joint scientific symposium
on nature and life sciences between Research Council of
Lithuania and Japan Society for Promotion of Science (JSPS)
was held in Vilnius. Following the symposium, on 25-26
September numerous Japanese scientific delegations fromorganisations such as: Japan Agency for Medical Researchand Development (AMED), Japan Science and Technology
Agency (JST), Japan Bio-Industry Association (JBA), National
Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology(AIST), Hiroshima and Kumamoto Universities, and a few
Japanese bio-tech sector companies attended the biannual“Life Sciences Baltics 2018” conference-exhibition in Vilnius.
This year is very special for Lithuania as the country
celebrates the 100th anniversary of the restoration of
the State. On this occasion and following the JapanesePrime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit to Lithuania last January,
Lithuanian Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis paid a reciprocal visit to Japan on 9-12 October. Prime Minister Skvernelis
was accompanied by a Lithuanian business delegation fromlife sciences, lasers, ICT and food sectors. In addition to thePrime Ministers’ meeting, where exceptional Lithuanian andJapanese cooperation in science, promotion of economic,
tourism, cultural and other exchanges were discussed,

the Lithuanian Prime Minister also opened the JapanLithuania Business Forum in Tokyo, organised by “Enterprise
Lithuania” and Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO).
Prime Minister Skvernelis also had a short stopover in“BioJapan 2018”, where he made one of the opening speeches and visited the Lithuanian booth. During this visit, theMemorandum of Cooperation (MoC) between the Ministryof Education and Science of the Republic of Lithuania andthe Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science andTechnology of Japan in the Field of Science and Technology
was also signed.
 https://www.kantei.go.jp/jp/98_abe/actions/201810/12lithuania.html

ITALIAN PARTICIPATION TO BIOJAPAN 2018
ASIA PREMIER PARTNERING EVENT FOR THE GLOBAL BIOTECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY
Embassy of Italy in Japan – Trade Promotion Section - has organised

EXHIBITING COMPANIES

the Italian participation to "BioJapan 2018 International Exhibition

A. Menarini I.F.R. Srl http://www.menarini.com

Japan", coordinating a group of 5 Italian firms that guarantee innovativetechnology and consistent quality.

The 5 exhibiting Italian firms presented their advanced technology andpartnership proposals at Italia’s Booth.
Furthermore, on the second day of the Exhibition - on Thursday 11
October - at the Stage A of the fair - an exhibitor's presentation has been
held, in which the Italian companies have introduced their latest technologies and services.
The biotech industry, which has a growing number of companies in Italy,
continues to show its competitiveness, not only at European level.
The sector is in constant development and, at the end of 2017, 571 biotech firms were counted in Italy. More than half of these are dedicatedbiotech R&D firms - that devote at least 75% of their intra-muros R&D
investments to biotech research activities.
Italy is confirmed to be the third country in Europe by number of R&D
companies in this important sector.
 http://www.ice-tokyo.or.jp/event-category4/biojapan-2018
 https://www.ics-expo.jp/biojapan/en

Accelera Srl

https://www.accelera.org

DAS Srl

http://www.dasitaly.com

Invest in Tuscany

http://www.investintuscany.com

Remembrane Srl

http://www.remembrane.com

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A JAPANESE DELEGATION AT VITAGORA – DIJON, FRANCEOn 13 November, Vitagora had the pleasure of welcoming a delegation of KBCC - Kyushu Bio Cluster Conference –from Japan, in Dijon, France. This visit aimed to strengthen the relationship and identify new partnership opportunities
between the members of KBCC and the members of Vitagora, as part of the close partnership between the two clusters.

The delegation was composed of Mr Shingo Hayashi (E Co., Ltd), Mr Kenichirou Houmoto (Houmoto Sesame Tofu Co., Ltd),Mr Cheng Ji Zhong (Choko Shoyu Co., Ltd), Doctor Kazuhisa Goto (National Agriculture and Food Research Organisation), Mr
Koremoto Morishita (KBCC), and Mr Tomohiko Murayama (KBCC). Within Scinnov, a culinary R&D center in Dijon, companies
shared their expertise in the pure Japanese tradition, in a warm and creative atmosphere.
In Dijon, they were introduced to 8 member companies of Vitagora, which represent specific interests for their activities:
Firmenich, Sensostat, Integral Foods, Fromageries Bel, Hari & Co, Scinnov, Piguet Gastronomie and Nactis Gourmet. Official
presentations, business meetings, and product tastings were organised, and new applications were discussed.
The tasting of traditional and innovative products from Japan was very much appreciated, such as sesame goma tofu and highquality soy sauce with other local products such as nori from the famous Ariake sea, which is very crispy and rich in flavor.
This visit has opened new opportunities for partnerships and business developments for both French and Japanese companies.
 http://www.vitagora.com

SELECTION OF THE FETACHEESE TO PARTICIPATE IN
THE GI FIESTA
Feta cheese was one of the four Geographical Indication(GI) Cheese products that were selected on 29 September
2018, by the Japan Imported Cheese Promotion
Association in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture,
Forestry and Fisheries of Japan (MAFF), to be presented
to the Japanese audience.

Feta cheese will be protected under the new Partnership
Agreement between the EU and Japan, which is expected
to come into force by March 2019. Over 2000 participants among them importers, bloggers and media - had the opportunity to discover the history of feta and the relevant reference in Homer’s Odyssey, explore the culinary combinationsin brusquettas, salads, pasta, omelettes, pizza and pies, andlearn more about its health benefits (rich in calcium, vitamins,
zinc, iron, phosphorus, magnesium and probiotics).
The fraudulent use of the name “feta” on the label of othercheeses of lower quality will stop once the Partnership
Agreement comes into force.
Source: Office of Economic and Commercial Affairs of the Embassy of
Greece in Japan

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COSMETIC 360 - THE SUCCESS OF THE YEAR OF
JAPAN AND THE VILLAGE OF J-BEAUTY
Cosmetic 360, the international trade fair for innovative ideas and solutions in the fragrance andcosmetics industry, opened its doors for the fourth edition last 17-18 October at Carrousel duLouvre in Paris.

Cosmetic 360, which is a showcase ofinternational innovation, honoured thisyear Japan, country of tradition andmodernity, and the world's 3rd largest
market for cosmetics. Organised by
Cosmetic Valley, with the sponsorshipof Shiseido, the Year of Japan allowed
visitiors to discover the traditions andtrends linked to the Japanese beauty:
KODO and SADO animations, make-up
artists, conferences, etc.

The Japan 360 Innovation Village of thecluster “Japan Cosmetic Center” hosted 10companies and allowed to discover a panorama of the latest Japanese innovations.
With France being Japan’s main supplierof cosmetics and wellness products, it
is only natural that Cosmetic Valley and
the Japan Cosmetic Center (JCC) haveestablished close ties. Created in 2013at Karatsu on the island of Kyushu, theJCC is a cluster inspired by the pioneering French model. It now has nearly 200
members.

During the first edition of Cosmetic 360,
the JCC and Cosmetic Valley signed
a partnership agreement that has
prompted joint R&D efforts, information exchange, and close cooperation ofother kinds.
Let’s continue to develop FrancoJapanese business and innovation
collaboration!
 https://www.cosmetic-360.com/en/

GERMAN-JAPANESE EXCHANGE ON
BUSINESS AND HUMAN RIGHTS
A rising number of Government officials and representatives from NGOs,
academia and businesses in Japan are interested in the issue of business andhuman rights.

In 2017, for example, Keidanren has included the respect of Human Rights as a new point in its Charter of Corporate Behavior
and the Government of Japan is working on a baseline study as a first step towards the formulation of a National Action Plan
(NAP) on business and human rights.
Germany published its NAP in December 2016. Its core message is that all companies are expected to exercise human rights
due diligence throughout the supply and value chain. The German Embassy in Tokyo invited Mr Markus Löning, the founderof “Löning – Human Rights & Responsible Business” and former Human Rights Commissioner of the Federal Government, toJapan from 9-12 October in order to give a series of talks on the German experience attracting around 300 people.

As the cooperation between German
and Japanese companies on third markets is an important driver of GermanJapanese bilateral trade relations, acommon understanding of humanrights and business issues will not only
support smooth transactions in thisarea but will also help companies tostand out from other competitors.
Source: German Embassy

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JAPAN GUEST COUNTRY AT THE 8TH EUROPEAN MEETING ONSCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION – TRANSFIERE
On 13-14 February 2019, the European Forum for Science, Technology andInnovation, TRANSFIERE, will take place in Malaga (Spain) to promote thetransfer of knowledge between research and business. The eighth editionof Transfiere (http://transfiere.malaga.eu/en) will feature the participation ofJapan as guest country.

Thus, institutional representatives and representatives from the business andresearch sectors from Japan will attend the forum to present the main keys,
challenges and opportunities of its innovative system, one of the most powerfuland developed in the world. Therefore, Japan will be the protagonist in 2019 andwill follow in the footsteps of Israel, South Korea, Portugal and Argentina, whohave held this recognition in previous calls. It is also worth mentioning that theJapanese delegation, within the framework of Transfiere, will complete a working
agenda with visits and bilateral meetings with administrations and various companies to identify synergies and potential cooperation projects.
The Technology Park of Andalusia (PTA) has participated in the event since the firstedition, as collaborator and energiser, especially in the international part. This year, thePTA will promote the transfer of technology between administrations, universities andcompanies from Spain and Japan, especially with the organisation of round tables, B2B
meetings as well as participants and expert searches.
 http://www.pta.es

Transfiere is a great professional andmultisectoral forum for the transfer ofknowledge and technology, as well as
contributing to improve the competitiveness of the business sector. Furthermore,
it shows who is who in the ecosystem ofnational and international R&D&I.
The last edition registered more than
4,500 visits and 1,700 public and private
entities were represented. Strategic sectors were represented, such as aeronautics and aerospace, agri-food, energy,
industry, infrastructure and transport,
environment, Spanish technologicalplatforms, health and information andcommunication technologies.

18 YEARS OF CLOSE COLLABORATION BETWEEN
THE ITALIAN AND JAPANESE LIQUID CRYSTAL
SOCIETIESThe Italian and Japanese Liquid Crystal
societies have a record-long history ofcommunication and collaboration.

Since 2002, the two communities have met
every two years to exchange their researchfindings and share their interests. The
meetings have been held in Erice (2002), Tsu(2004), Castiglioncello (2006), Nara (2008),
Cetraro (2010), Tokyo (2012), Ravenna (2014),
and Kyoto (2016). During 16-19 September 2018, the 9thbilateral workshop was held in Pavia, at the historical Collegio
Cairoli with an attendance of more than 50 people, 12 ofwhich were the representatives of the Japanese delegation.
The next event is expected to take place in Kyushu.
Liquid crystals are a class of materials that are very wellknown because of their use in monitors, television sets, anddisplays in general. While the basics of this technology are
well established, as demonstrated from the 100 billion dollars
worldwide market for liquid crystal displays, new applications
for liquid crystals are constantly sought, and new materials withnew properties are found. Moreover, liquid-crystal-type structures are being found in very different contexts, such as in the
spontaneous organisation of biological molecules.

Many of these novelties have been discussed in theJapanese-Italian bilateral liquid crystal workshops, wheresome of the topics were: use of liquid crystals for the fabrication of rubbery matter, development of new technologies
and computer simulation tools for the study of liquid crystals,
the possible role of liquid crystal ordering in the origin of life,
the emergence of new strategies to modify the orientation ofliquid crystals in display pixels.
The Japanese-Italian liquid crystal workshops are also an occasion for social bonding between the two communities, whichis the best background for fruitful collaborations and for thedevelopment of programmes involving the exchange of young
researchers between laboratories.
 http://www.sicl.it/meetings2018

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FRENCH RESEARCH DAY IN JAPAN 201812 DECEMBER 2018, TOKYO, JAPAN
Sciencescope, the French Students and Researchers Organization in Japan, theEmbassy of France in Japan and the French Institute of Research on Japan (MFJ,
UMIFRE 19 MEAE-CNRS) are organising the French Research Day in Japan (JournéeFrancophone de la Recherche, J·FR 2018) on Wednesday 12 December 2018 at
Maison Franco-Japonaise (MFJ), Tokyo (Ebisu).

The J·FR 2018 programme will consist of several researchpresentations and posters. It will be concluded by a panel inEnglish to celebrate the 15 years of the French-Japanese programme PHC SAKURA, and will be followed by a reception at
the Residence de France (French Embassy).
Since 1997, J·FR is gathering yearly the community of students and researchers in Japan from all disciplines and citizenships. This event intends to promote research discussions
among researchers, students, engineers, officials, company
representatives or any interested person and to present theiractivities in Japan. Interested people are kindly invited toparticipate to J·FR 2018.

The registration is free and open to all, but it is mandatory andcan be made online through the J·FR 2018 website Thursday
6 December 2018. The reception will take place at Residence
de France of the French Embassy and we invite you to register
early. Once the registration to the reception is closed, participants will receive an official invitation card by e-mail to bepresented at the entrance of the Residence de France.
For any inquiries, please feel free to contact the organisingteam at: sciencescopejfr@gmail.com
For registration and further information, please visit the J·FR
2017 website.
 http://www.sciencescope.org/JFR2018en

EIG CONCERT-JAPAN 5TH JOINT CALL – RESULTS:
FUNCTIONAL POROUS MATERIALSThe European Interest Group (EIG) CONCERT-Japan is pleased to reveal the
5 projects selected for funding within its 5th Joint Call “Functional Porous
Materials”.

The European Interest Group (EIG) CONCERT-Japan is aninternational joint initiative to support and enhance science, technology and innovation (STI) cooperation between
European countries and Japan. It began as an ERA-NET
project from 2011 until 2014. The collaboration has continued independently of EU support since 2015, as an activity
from a broader European Interest Group for Japan, a flexible
platform established in 2014 for communication among STI
agencies in European countries and Japan that are interested
in cooperating together.

10 funding organisations from 9 countries participated in
the 5th call in 2018: JST (Japan), AEI – MINECO (Spain), BMBF
(Germany), BNSF (Bulgaria), CAS and MEYS (Czech Republic),
CNRS (France) MITA (Lithuania), NCBR (Poland) and TUBITAK(Turkey).
43 proposals were successfully submitted, more than double
the amount of last year, a proof of the programme’s dynamism and of the call’s relevance for European and Japanese
researchers.

Following the assessment and recommendation by an expert panel, the participating funding organisations selected the following 5 projects for funding:• MICROGREEN - “Scientific Upgrading of Novel Multi-dimensional Microporous Catalysts for Green Chemical Reactions”.
Coordinator: Prof. Yoshihiro Kubota, Yokohama National University• SUPRAPROUS - “Nanoparticle Supramolecular Frameworks as Advances Nanoporous Materials”. Coordinator: Dr Javier
Montenegro, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela• POROPCM - “Functional POROus centitious nanocomposites for heat storage in buildings using Phase Change Materials”.
Coordinator: Prof. Eduardus Koenders, Technische Universität Darmstadt• X-MEM - “Outperforming functionality: composite/mixed matrix porous materials in membrane-based processes”.
Coordinator: Dr. Nazely Diban, University of Cantabria• PROPER - “PRintable fully inorganic porous metal Oxide based PERovskite Solar Cells: defining charge selective oxides
for high-efficient and low-cost device structure”. Coordinator: Dr Andreas Hinsch, Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy
Systems http://www.concert-japan.eu

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THE 9TH KOBE UNIVERSITY BRUSSELSEUROPEAN CENTRE SYMPOSIUM
The 9th Kobe University Brussels European Centre Symposium "Smart Cities, Secure
Societies: Breakthroughs in EU and Japan Research Cooperation" took place in Brussels
on 24 October 2018. The event was jointly organised with the Vrije Universiteit Brussel(VUB), which also hosts the Kobe University Brussels European Centre (KUBEC).

Forty speakers representing leading universities from Belgium, France, Germany,
Georgia, Poland, and the UK, as well as
officials from the European Commission
and the Japanese government, sharedexperiences, presented projects anddiscussed initiatives to strengthen research cooperation. In total, a record 110
participants attended the symposium,including Japanese and EU officials, researchers, students, and representatives
from embassies and industry.
Chaired by Prof. Ken-ichi Yoshida(Executive Director of KUBEC), the symposium opened with addresses fromProf. Hiroshi Takeda (Kobe University
President), Prof. Dr Romain Meeusen(Vrije Universiteit Brussel Vice-Rector),
H.E. Mr Kazuo Kodama (Ambassador ofJapan to the EU), and Mr Patrick Child(Deputy Director-General, DG RTD,
European Commission). Speakers highlighted key opportunities for strengthening collaboration under Horizon 2020
and the EU-Japan Strategic Partnership
Agreement concluded on 17 July 2018.
The morning parallel sessions presented examples of successful cooperation in highly topical areas, including‘Security challenges in an changing

world’ and ‘Disaster-resilient societies;‘Smart Cities’ focusing on sustainableenergy, robotics and intelligent mobility; and ‘Between Orient and Occident’covering issues of cultural memory andcultural transfer.
The afternoon was devoted to threeworkshops and brokerage events on‘Evidence-based disaster medicine’;‘Rethinking mobility for smarter andmore liveable cities’; and ‘Food, culture
and history: a cultural anthropology
of East-West exchanges’. These highly
focused events provided opportunities
for in-depth discussions between EU
and Japanese partners, with the aimof shaping joint research projects in
response to Horizon 2020 calls.
Mr Gianpaolo Suriano (DG EAC, EC)
presented information on the new EUJapan Joint Calls for proposals under
the Erasmus Mundus Inter-University
Exchange Project.
This symposium illustrated, once again,
Kobe University’s active presence inBrussels, in partnership with the VUB,
as well as its ongoing commitment tostrengthening research cooperation
with European partners on key issues
shared by Japan and Europe.

Prof. Hiroshi Takeda (Kobe
University President)

Prof. Dr Romain Meeusen (Vrije
Universiteit Brussel Vice-Rector)

 http://www.office.kobe-u.ac.jp/ipiep/events/20181024_en.html

FRAUNHOFER FEP EXHIBITS AT IDW 2018
Fraunhofer FEP, a specialist in electron beam and plasma
technology as well as in R&D for organic electronics and OLED
microdisplays, will present its latest research results regarding
coatings on flat and flexible products like ultra-thin glass andfoils.

Furthermore, the scientists will present their latest OLED
microdisplays for wearables and various evaluation kits andtoolboxes with Bluetooth connection as well as demonstrators of flexible OLED processed in sheet-to-sheet and roll-toroll technology.

IN MORE DETAIL, THEY WILL PRESENT:• Fingerprint sensor based on bidirectional OLED microdisplay• Large-area WUXGA OLED
microdisplay• Ultra-low-power OLED microdisplays
for wearables• Organic photodiodes• Permeation barrier films• Flexible OLED lighting demonstrators• Optical coatings on ultra-thin glass

The IDW 2018 will take place at Nagoya Congress Center on 12-14 December 2018.

 https://www.idw.or.jp/index.html

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FRANCE-JAPANINTERMEDIATE WORKSHOPON CYBER-SECURITY
On 29-30 October 2018 was held an intermediate workshopof the cybersecurity cooperation between France andJapan in Keio University, Tokyo (Japan).

This two-day intermediate workshop had for purpose to
rapidly share and organise the cooperation between France
and Japan on two specific topics: cybersecurity of Internet ofThings (IoT) and cybersecurity and artificial intelligence (AI).
A satellite meeting focusing on ethics, privacy and fairness incybersecurity took place on 31 October 2018. The Workshop
Chair was Professor Mitsuhiro Okada.
On this occasion, a delegation of French researchers participated in the workshop in Tokyo and some presentations
were given through videoconference meetings with France.

The delegation was composed of: Dr Claude Kirchner, cochair, Inria; Dr Hélène Kirchner, Scientific Committee Member,
European and International Partnerships Department (EIPD)
of Inria; Dr Kavé Salamatian, member of Scientific Committee,
University of Annecy and Inria, Stéphane Grumbach, Inria; Dr
Hervé Debar, IMT.
 https://project.inria.fr/FranceJapanICST

EXPERTS MEET TO DISCUSS THE FUTURE OF TECHNOLOGYBASED NEUROREHABILITATION
A Workshop entitled "Worldwide consensus on NeuroRehabilitation” was held on 16 October in the scope of the International
Conference on Neurorehabilitation 2018
in Pisa (Italy), gathering representative
experts in the field of neurorehabilitationfrom both medical and engineering backgrounds, coming from Japan and Europe
but also with viewpoints from the US andthe Middle-east. The event discussed key
ideas towards the establishment of consensus in this area and the role of new technolDiscussion panel: from left to right: Hitoshi Hirata (Nagoya University, Japan), Shingoogies to improve the result of treatments
Shimoda (RIKEN, Japan), Ichiro Miyai (Morinomiya Hospital, Japan), Juan C. Moreno (Cajal
for neural repair.
 http://www.icnr2018.org/workshops/

Institute - CSIC, Spain), William Z. Rymer (Northwestern University, US), Marco Molinari(Fondazione Santa Lucia, Italy)

UNLOCKING THE POTENTIAL OF GLOBAL RESEARCH AND
INNOVATION COLLABORATIONAs more countries are looking to help their businesses grow and scale up, the need for global R&D and innovation
collaboration is now a necessity.

In this opportune moment - where the next framework programme, Horizon Europe, is being negotiated - EUREKA, theMission of Canada to the EU, and the Gouvernement du Québec co-organised a breakfast panel discussion on global
cooperation in research and innovation as part of the 10th European Innovation Summit (EIS) (https://www.knowledge4innovation.eu/k4i-events/10th-european-innovation-summit) in the European Parliament on 27 November 2018 to also remind EU
institutions the value and importance of global cooperation in RDI.
Titled “Unlocking the potential of global research and innovation collaboration”, the session aimed to stimulate discussion on
how the EU and non-EU countries can mutually enhance cooperation in RDI. High-level panellists from the EC, EUREKA andnon-European countries shared best practices and recommendations on how global collaboration could be optimised andhow to further enhance a win-win cooperation. Prof. Hiroshi Nagano, Visiting Fellow, Center for R&D Strategy (CRDS), former
Chairman of the Global Science Forum, OECD and former Director-General, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science andTechnology will be representing Japan in the panel.
 https://www.knowledge4innovation.eu/k4i-events/10th-european-innovation-summit

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DINNER ON GREEK CULTURE AND GASTRONOMYGreece was the country of honour during the official dinner organised in Aizu-Wakamatsu, in Fukushima Prefecture on
18 October 2018.

The 250 prominent attendees had the opportunity to taste dishes containing the original Greek feta, Greek extra virgin oil, Greek
wine, retsina and ouzo and to watch videos on the history of Greece, investment opportunities, its beauties and lifestyle.
Participants were enthused to discover how well Greek original products mingle with local ingredients and how easy the
preparation of Greek dishes can be. The Mayor of Aizu-Wakamatsu and the President of Aizu-Wakamatsu Chamber ofCommerce and Industry honoured the event with their presence and expressed the wish, in view also of the growing interestof the participants in Greece and the Olympic Games 2020, for similar events to be repeated in the near future.
Source: Office of Economic and Commercial Affairs of the Embassy of Greece in JapanNIHONCHA AWARD 2018 - TASTING COMPETITION IN
PARIS, FRANCE FOR PREMIUM TEAS FROM JAPANAn important series of cultural events was launched by Crown Prince Naruhito on 12 September 2018 in Paris, tocelebrate the 160 years of diplomatic relations between France and Japan. One of these Japonismes events was thesetting up of several tasting sessions in Paris to evaluate and rank premium teas from the 2018 harvest.

These 19 cups had previously been selected out of around 400 teas as the bestof the various categories by a jury of local
tea professionals during the annual national Nihoncha competition, established
5 years ago to enhance and promote premium quality (https://nihoncha-award.jp).
Taking the final round of the 2018
Nihoncha competition to Paris was abrilliant opportunity offered by the
Japonismes festivities. To attract moretea professionals, it was scheduled during the big International Food Fair SIAL,
held in Paris on 21-25 October.
The tasting sessions were run in theprestigious environment of one of theParis boroughs’ town halls and in the
famous chef school “Cordon Bleu Paris”,
near the Eiffel Tower. The participants
were welcomed by the Chairman of theJapanese Tea Instructors Associationand the 19 cups were then presented tothe participants by a Japanese brewing
team. The tiny cups offered about 5 sips
each, and the evaluations were to be
noted in a provided ranking sheet.

Too little time for some of the incredibly
savoury cups, sighed some attendees, allimpressed by the smooth logistics andthe diligent and smiling brewing crew.
Although it was a blind tasting, somecategories could be identified amongst
the ten, which are: the 4 types of Sencha
teas, normal and deep steamed, grownin full sun and partially shaded, Gyokuro,
Tamaryokucha, Kamairicha, Hôjicha, fully
oxidised teas and partly oxidised teas.
Whilst the operation was centrally
managed from Tokyo, the French
Ambassador for Japanese green teas,
Ms Misako Lelong Nohsoh (info@
thevertjaponais.fr), in charge of theParis set up was supervising and givinga helping hand.
The Master of Ceremony was Mr Florent
Weugue, who is currently the only
French national qualified as Nihoncha
Instructor, who had travelled from his
Tokyo office, to ensure good communication between the Paris tea lovers,
the French tea professionals and theJapanese tea delegates.

Ms Lelong Nohsoh and Mr Weugue

A memorable event, which help theJapanese premium teas be better known
in France, where genuine and specificterroir tastes are well understood andhighly appreciated.
In line with the rating results from theParis tasting session, an ultimate JapaneseJury will consolidate and validate the selective process within the next few weeks.
The final result naming the Nihoncha
Paris 2018 winner cup is expected to beannounced by early November.
 http://nouvellepresseduthe.blogspot.com

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HUNGARIAN DESIGN COMPANY MAFORM SECURESPARTNERSHIP WITH PHIARO GROUP!
Leading industrial design company Maform Design has signed a major partnership with the Phiaro Group (http://www.
phiaro.jp/english). The Hungarian design company, run by Peter Molnar and Geza Csire, is behind the redesign of the
Galaxy gear edge smartwatch, the creation of the modulo city bus and the velo class bicycle counter among others.
They recently joined forces with Japanese market leader Phiaro to assist them with their automobile user interfaces.

Phiaro specialises in styling, engineering, modelling andthe production of state-of-the-art vehicles. They have been
producing world class sports cars, motorcycles and lorries for
78 years. Some of their cutting-edge creations include the
P7S CIPHER sport car, the P75 Sidekick motorcycle, the Buzz
Copter drone copter, and the Grasshopper motorcycle.
Maform Design is a specialised agency that offers advanced
and accessible design solutions to tech companies. The opportunity to work with Phiaro first came about when Maform
started searching for companies who shared their devotion to innovate and their strong beliefs in ethical business.
Maform struck up the partnership following a number of
meetings with the leading automotive producer.

Based in Budapest, Maform’s product design capabilities savescaling companies time and money with affordable solutions
and extensive team design knowledge. The company was firstrecognised by the Japanese auto industry leader Phiaro for
their revolutionary process that bridges the gap between design and expertise through producing prototypes and custom
digital interfaces. Their flexible approach to design and concentration on professional quality and client satisfaction leadthe company to be successful in a demanding design market.
The partnership with Phiaro is unique to Maform in that it
is more flexible and is built on mutual trust. It is also more
focused on long-term cooperation than short-term business success. As Maform Design put it ‘we are planting trees
instead of just exchanging the ripe fruits.’

Source: Hungarian National Trading House

INTERNSHIP OF JAPANESE EXCHANGE STUDENTS IN THE
NETHERLANDS
Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences (RUAS) has implemented since 2000 an exchange programme with 8 partner
universities in Japan. The programme offers to the students various semesters study programmes and internshipopportunities at companies / organisations within the Netherlands.

Since internships for a long period (3-6months) are not usual in Japan, theinternship is seen as a unique opportunity by the Japanese universities, students as well as by recruiters in Japan.
Through the internship, students get
better understanding in the European
way of working, business communication, and social relations in Europe etc.
The following is a story of one student
from Osaka who has done her internship at a startup in Rotterdam.
“I am Saki Kakuda from Osaka, Japanand I am currently attending an exchange programme in Rotterdam.
Recently, I have been working in a small
company called Babysits as an intern inRotterdam.
My main task initially was starting up
the Japanese website of the company
and consequently doing the online
marketing for the website.
Source: Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences

In the middle: Ms Saki Kakuda

I have been learning a lot from thisexperience, and the biggest thing I
realized is that it's difficult to adapt thebusiness based on the cultural difference. What I am basically doing forJapan is expanding the babysitting
culture since Japanese people are notreally familiar with the babysitting/babysitter culture.
Every-time I call Japanese customers
and write some articles for Japanese
bloggers, I think about how to approach them.

If I approach them in the way we dofor European people it is going to be
beside the point. And these facts areinteresting for me and making me realize that studying/gaining more deep
knowledge about marketing strategy
based on culture is something that I
want to do in the future.
My future plan so far is going back toJapan, finishing my bachelor, working in a
Japanese big company as a marketer for ayear and coming back to this country andstudy a master in the marketing field.”CENTRE’THE
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2018II 44VOL
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PARTNERING OPPORTUNITIESJAPANESE COMPANIES LOOKING FOR PARTNERS IN THE EU

 http://een-japan.eu/opportunities

SERVICES OFFERED
Sector: Industrial equipment
A Japanese company is seeking
partners in the EU for their polishing andmanufacturing technology
Profile ID: BOJP20181107002

REQUEST FOR DISTRIBUTOR
Sector: Industrial equipment
A Japanese pipe fitting manufacturer
is seeking distribution partners andconsumers in the EU
Profile ID: BOJP20181106001

REQUEST FOR DISTRIBUTOR OR AGENT
Sector: Chemical
A Japanese company is looking for a
German partner for its filter cartridge
used in manufacturing disinfection
deodorisation water
Profile ID: BOJP20181008001

REQUEST FOR DISTRIBUTOR
Sector: Industrial equipment
A Japanese company specialised in air
compressors and spray equipment islooking for distributors in the EU
Profile ID: BOJP20181115001

REQUEST FOR AGENT
Sector: Industrial equipment
A Japanese laboratory equipment andsupplies provider is seeking commercial
agents for its evaporators
Profile ID: BOJP20181107001

REQUEST FOR AGENT
Sector: Camera
A Japanese company is seeking
commercial agents in the EU to promote
its newly developed infrared multispectral
colour night vision camera
Profile ID: BOJP20181023001

REQUEST FOR AGENT
Sector: Industrial manufacturing
A Japanese metal injection moulding
company is looking for sales
representatives in Europe for their
metalworking services
Profile ID: BOJP20171031001

TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER OFFERED
Sector: Biotech, pharmaceutical
A Japanese biotech company is seeking
an EU partner for collaborative research on
drug discovery
Profile ID: TOJP20181024001

REQUEST FOR DISTRIBUTOR
Sector: Beverages
A Japanese alcohol exporter is looking for
distributors to introduce Japanese alcohols
and their cultural aspects in the EU
Profile ID: BOJP20171025002

SERVICES OFFERED
Sector: Biotech, pharmaceutical
A Japanese compound screening company
for drug discovery offers its services to EU
pharmaceutical and biotech companies
Profile ID: BOJP20171110001

REQUEST FOR DISTRIBUTOR OR AGENT
Sector: Trolley
Japanese manufacturer of shopping
trolleys with integrated solar panels seeks
agents and distributors in the EU
Profile ID: BOJP20171025001

REQUEST FOR INVESTORS
Sector: Pharmaceutical
Japanese start-up looking for partners fortheir naturally-derived anti-fungal drug forfoot disease
Profile ID: TOJP20171128001

CENTRE’THE
NETWORKS NEWSPARTNERING OPPORTUNITIESEU-JAPAN
EU-JAPANNEWS
NEWS II DECEMBERDECEMBER2018
2018II 44VOL
VOL16
16 I PAGE 36

EU COMPANIES LOOKING FOR PARTNERS IN JAPAN http://een-japan.eu/opportunities

TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER REQUESTREQUEST FOR SUPPLIER

Sector: バイオテック＆ライフサイエンス
ドイツのライフサイエンス企業は、研究機関もしくは中小企業の協業パートナーを探しています
Profile ID: TRDE20180928001

Sector: 高級品
イタリアの高品質メガネ企業は日本でのディストリビューターを探していますProfile ID: BRIT20181009001

Sector: 教育
イタリア中リア中小企業の革新的なナノ構造マイクロスポンジ
リア中小企業の革新的なナポンジ
Profile ID: TRDE20180824001

Sector: 産業機械
ルーマニアのディストリビューターは、環境モニタリングと保護関連分野の設備や計器のサプライヤーと製造業者を探しています
Profile ID: BRRO20181026002

TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER OFFEREDREQUEST FOR DISTRIBUTOR OR AGENT

Sector: ICT, 航空宇宙
フランスの中小企業は空港自動化に向けたエアサイドソリュー
ションを提供いたします
Profile ID: NoID-037

Sector: エネルギー,クリーンテック＆環境
フランスの水素貯蔵タンク製造企業は商業代理店とディストリ
ビューターを探しています
Profile ID: BOFR20180806002

Sector: ナノテクノロジー
ポーランドのグラフェン素材を製造する企業が産業とR&Dパー
トナーを探しています
Profile ID: TOPL20180620001

Sector: エネルギー,クリーンテック＆環境
フランスの水素エネルギーシステムに特化した企業は、商業代理店とディストリビューターを探しています
Profile ID: BOFR20180903001

Sector: ナノテクノロジー
イタリア中小企業の革新的なナノ構造マイクロスポンジ
Profile ID: TOIT20181022001

Sector: ナノテクノロジー
ポーランドのグラフェン素材を扱う企業が代理店・ディストリ
ビューターを探しています
Profile ID: BOPL20180620002

REQUEST FOR DISTRIBUTOR
Sector: ICT
ポルトガルのプローブ・センサーシステムをリアルタイムでモニタリングするソフトウェアに特化した企業です。同社はパートナーを探しています
Profile ID: BOPT20180821001
Sector: 高級品
イタリアの高品質メガネ専門会社は、日本におけるディストリ
ビューターを探しています
Profile ID: BOIT20180928001
Sector: 食品飲料
スペインのエアルーム品種のテーブルオリーブ製造企業が輸入業者とディストリビュターを探しています
Profile ID: BOES20180808001
Sector: クラフト＆デザイン
オランダの総合遊具システムデザイン会社は日本でのディスト
リビューターを探しています
Profile ID: BONL20180220001
Sector: その他
エストニア企業はクリック＆コレクトショッピングスタイルソ
リューションに特化し、日本でのディストリビューターを探していますProfile ID: BOEE20181030001

REQUEST FOR INVESTOR & DISTRIBUTOR
Sector: ICT
ドイツの企業は高齢化社会に向けたＶＲソリューションを提供いたしますProfile ID: NoID-036

REQUEST FOR PARTNER
Sector: 食品飲料
スペインのエアルーム品種のテーブルオリーブ製造企業が輸入業者とディストリビュターを探しています
Profile ID: BOBG20180814002

ENTERPRISE EUROPE
NETWORK EVENTSB2B OPPORTUNITIES FOR EU AND JAPANESE SMES http://een.ec.europa.eu/tools/services/EVE/Event/ListEvents

UP YOUR GAME B2B EVENT
7-8 February 2019, Bradford, UK
Sectors: animation, games, VFX, AR and VR
Registration deadline: 27 January 2019
Enterprise Europe Network team in Bradford, in partnership with the Science & Media Museum, is organising a B2B
matchmaking event alongside the Yorkshire Games Festival.
The aim of the event is to offer participants a structured wayof meeting other event delegates, in order to explore potential collaboration. Up Your Game aims to facilitate collaboration, ideas, innovation and investment in animation, games,
motion graphics, VFX, AR and VR.
 https://upyourgame.b2match.io

CALENDAR
DATE/LOCATION
6 December 2018
27Willich,June - Germany
1 July 2016
Tokyo, Japan
7 December 2018
Tokyo, Japan

7 December 2018
Tokyo, Japan

13 December 2018
Tokyo, Japan
13 December 2018
Tokyo, Japan
18 December 2018
Tokyo, Japan

18 December 2018
Tokyo, Japan

29 Jan - 1 Feb 2019
Tokyo, Japan

20-31 May 2019
Tokyo, Japan

24-28 June 2019
Nagoya, Japan

EU-JAPAN NEWS I DECEMBER 2018 I 4 VOL 16 I PAGE 37

DETAILSCONTACTSMEETINGSEMINARAND RECEPTION
Future of Imaging
in Germany and Japan - Synergy

DJW
EU-Japan
Centre for Industrial Cooperation
https://www.djw.de/de/veranstaltungen/djw-ve-

Potential
for AI, Digitization
Energy Strategy
in Japan and Automation

http://www.exporttojapan.co.uk/event/ranstaltungen/djw-asa-no-kai-willich-20181206
Fondation Franco-Japonaise Sasakawa

CONFERENCE

http://www.ffjs.org/projets/article/conferencesur-le-japon-d-aujourd-hui

Conférence sur le Japon d’aujourd’hui

KU Leuven

SEMINAR

Second Seminar on innovation, research & development“KU Leuven spin-offs in Japan

https://alum.kuleuven.be/eng/alumni-chapter-japan/2nd_seminar-on-innovation-research-development

SEMINAR

Italian Chamber of Commerce in Japan

EU-Japan EPA: new opportunities for food & wine export
as from 2019https://www.iccj.or.jp/en/content/eu-japan-epanew-opportunities-food-wine-export-2019

NETWORKING EVENT

Czech Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Japan

10th Czech Business & Culture Networking Event

https://www.cccij.com/inpage/2018-11-28/

Swedish Chamber of Commerce and Industry in JapanTALK SESSION

Productivity conundrum for Japan by Yumiko Murakami,
Head of OECD Japan

http://www.sccj.org/index.php?option=com_ohanah&view=event&id=318&Itemid=374

French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Japan

FORUM

http://www.ccifj.or.jp/evenements/calendrier/vue-detail/d/knowing-french-companies-2018/

Knowing French Companies 2018
EUROPEAN COMMISSION FUNDED PROGRAMME

EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation

Sectoral Mission: Nanotech Cluster & SMEs Mission

http://www.eu-japan.eu/events/nanotech-cluster-sme-mission

EUROPEAN COMMISSION FUNDED PROGRAMME

EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation

Training Mission: Get Ready for Japan
Application deadline: 31 january 2019http://www.eu-japan.eu/events/get-ready-forjapan-training-programme

EUROPEAN COMMISSION FUNDED PROGRAMME

EU-Japan Centre for Industrial Cooperation

Training Mission:
WCM - World Class Manufacturing - session I
Application deadline: 21 March 2019http://www.eu-japan.eu/events/world-class-manufacturing

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2019
The EU-Japan Centre wishes you a cheerful and happy New Year!

ANY EU-JAPAN-RELATED NEWS?
is a joint venture co-financed by the European
Commission and the Japanese Ministry of Economy,
Trade and Industry (METI). Its aim is to foster thedevelopment of industrial cooperation between
companies from both regions through training
programmes for businesspeople, for EU andJapanese students and researchers, and throughinformation services and an industrial dialogue.
This quarterly newsletter is produced by the EUbased office of the EU-Japan Centre, and is primarily
intended to provide EU/Japan-related news.

Feel free to contact us if you would like your EU-Japan-related
news/event to be announced in our forthcoming newsletter :michelson@eu-japan.eu
HEAD OFFICE IN JAPANOFFICE IN THE EU

Shirokane-Takanawa Station bldg 4F
1-27-6 Shirokane, Minato-ku
Tokyo 108-0072, Japan
T +81 3 6408 0281
F +81 3 6408 0283

Rue Marie de Bourgogne 52
B-1000 Brussels, Belgium
T +32 2 282 00 40
F +32 2 282 00 45
office@eu-japan.eu

www.eu-japan.eu
The European Office of the EU-Japan Centre alone is responsible for the information contained in its communications or publications. Neither the European Commission nor the Government of Japan is responsible
for any use that may be made of the information contained therein. Editor: J. Michelson