************************************************************************* Issue 28 [November 2008] OCCI e-Magazine http://www.osaka.cci.or.jp/e/index.html ************************************************************************* [For the READERS' ATTENTION] With the enforcement in December 2008 of the revised "Act on Regulation of the Transmission of Specified Electronic Mail", we at the OCCI e-Magazine are required to have the Readers' contact details registered with us in order to continue our transmission to you. We assure you that the personal information provided in the contact details will be used by us only for transmission of OCCI e-Magazines and for directly related matters and not for any other purpose. Please provide us at an early opportunity with your details in a form similar to the following; For Registration with OCCI e-Magazine: Name of Company/ Organization: E-mail Address: Name of Person in Charge: Position/Department: Thank you for your cooperation. Chief Editor Yasutsugu Kohzuki ================================================================================== [CONTENTS, November 2008] 1. OCCI's New Board of Executives 2. OCCI Chairman's Comment on the result of U.S. Presidential Election 3. OCCI Economic Mission to Thailand & Vietnam 4. International Cooperation Activities briskly conducted, one after another, in OCCI's 'Life Science' projects 5. OCCI International Division report on VIP visitors ========================================================================= 1. OCCI's New Board of Executives The new OCCI Board of Executives, as a result of the Extraordinary General Meeting of OCCI Councilors held on November 4th 2008, are as shown below, with Chairman A. Nomura and 6 Vice Chairmen reappointed. Mr. Atsushi KOJIMA, Chairman of GANKO Food Service Co., Ltd., has then been newly appointed Vice Chairman of OCCI. GANKO Food Service holds chain Japanese-food restaurants mainly throughout Osaka Prefecture. As the head of Tourism Industry Promotion Committee [under OCCI's "Plan to Create Liveliness in Osaka (2008-2010)"], Mr. Kojima will continue to exercise his leadership particularly in promoting activities to enhance our tourism industry. ---OCCI BOARD of EXECUTIVES--- Chairman: Akio NOMURA (Chairman, Osaka Gas Co., Ltd.)(reappointed) Vice Chairman: Takeo HIGUCHI (Chairman & CEO, Daiwa House Industry Co., Ltd.)(reappointed) Vice Chairman: Teiichi NISHIMURA (President, Sakura Color Products Corporation)(reappointed) Vice Chairman: Shigetaka SATO (President, Keihan Electric Railway Co., Ltd.) (reappointed) Vice Chairman: Mitsuhiro ISHIBASHI (Vice Chairman, Nippon Life Insurance Company)(reappointed) Vice Chairman: Makoto KATO (Senior Corporate Adviser, ITOCHU Corporation)(reappointed) Vice Chairman: Katsuhiko MACHIDA (Chairman & CEO, Sharp Corporation)(reappointed) Vice Chairman: Atsushi KOJIMA (Consulting Director, Osaka Restaurant Management Association)(newly appointed) President: Masahiro NADAMOTO (reappointed) ======================================================================== 2. OCCI Chairman's Comment on the result of U.S. Presidential Election In a state of deep despair, Americans voted to choose "change". We hope that the U.S. economy will soon be put back on track and that the economic and diplomatic policies will be carried out, based on international cooperation and harmony. We would like our Government to establish, at early stages a relationship of mutual confidence with the new Administration and maintain continued close relations between the two countries. ======================================================================== 3. OCCI Economic Mission to Thailand & Vietnam OCCI Economic Mission was sent to visit Thailand and Vietnam during November 9th - 16th for the purpose of looking into the latest economic environments of Thailand, Laos and Vietnam by travelling through and inspecting the "East-West Economic Corridor" expected as a major route for transports of goods, keeping in view, potentials for further development of business in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) where recent attention is focused as a new economic zone. In Thailand, the Mission visited and toured the plant of Toyota Motor Thailand Co., Ltd. which is conducting wide-ranging business activities in GMS, and exchanged views with those from a Japanese company concerning development of business in GMS. The Mission members actually drove overland from Mukudahan of Thailand, across the 2nd Mekong Bridge, to Laos and Vietnam, so as to make sure of the potentials of the East-West Economic Corridor running across GMS (Mawlamyine, Myanmar - Danang, Vietnam), as such a major route, although there is room for further improvement on systems such as for customs clearance etc. In Vietnam, they made a tour of the port facilities of Danang (which is the core city in the central areas of the country) where GMS's starting point on the east side is based. OCCI Chairman A, Nomura joined the Mission in Hanoi to meet and talk with Mr. Vu Hug Hoang, Minister of Commerce and Industry. Minister Hoang stressed that the Vietnam economy still keeps growing amid the recently severe worldwide economic environments, and also that Vietnam will focus strength on development of "subjacent" or support industries as its industrial growth policy. Both Minister Hoang and Chairman Nomura agreed on the necessity of more exchange activities between both countries' small and medium enterprises for that purpose. ======================================================================== 4. International Cooperation Activities briskly conducted, one after another, in OCCI's 'Life Science' projects Since 2004, OCCI has been working hard under its 'Plan to Create Liveliness in Osaka' with action plans focusing on the 3 Engine Industries (New Products-making, Tourism and Life Science) and we are introducing the events for international cooperation activities recently conducted in the Life Science area: October 2: U.K. Bio Seminar (cosponsored by the U.K. Consulate General in Osaka, Osaka Prefecture and OCCI) With 13 venture businesses invited from U.K., the event offered useful bio information to about 100 corporate representatives. October 7-9: BioBridge Kansai (office based in OCCI) participated in BIO TECHNICA 2008 and organized individual meetings for business talks with 79 foreign companies. October 16: Conducted business matchings between Kansai companies and those from Life Science Corridor France. October 20: Memorandum of Agreement made with the Clinical Trial Network of Queensland, Australia and held a seminar. October 31: Conducted 'Minnesota Medical Products / Devices' Seminar, with lecturers invited from the BioBusiness Alliance of Minnesota and Medtronic, Inc., both from Minnesota (U.S.) where concentration of medical instruments / appliances manufacturing is the greatest among all the states of America. November 7: Conducted KOREA Bio-Big Day in Japan 2008: Organized partnering between Kansai pharma or medicine-manufacture-related companies and 10 Korean bioventure companies invited. Besides all the above events, OCCI is positively promoting various life science activities through projects such as 'Japan Bio-technology Business Competition' (http://www.biocompe.jp/english/index.html) and 'Drug Patent Online Marketplace' (http://www.drugtech-patent.jp/e/). Under the 'Plan to Create Liveliness in Osaka' OCCI continues its endeavors to promote useful projects in the Life Science area. Contact : J.Azuma (+81-6-6944-6484) OCCI, in charge of Life Science Promotion, Economy and Industry Division. 'Plan to Create Liveliness in Osaka' : http://www.osaka.cci.or.jp/e/vision/economy.html ======================================================================== 5. OCCI International Division report on VIP visitors * October 22 (Wed) Mr. Peter VRSANSKY, Ambassador Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Japan * October 23 (Thu) Mr. Akylbek Absatuly Kamaldinov, Ambassador Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan in Japan * October 24 (Fri) Mr. Daniel Adan Ziewezo Polski, Ambassador Embassy of the Argentine Republic in Japan * October 29 (Wed) Ms. Maria Lourdes V. Ramiro Lopez, Consul General Philippine Consulate-General in Osaka * November 7 (Fri) Mr. Peteris Vaivars, Ambassador Embassy of the Republic of Latvia in Japan ========================================================================