KENORA DAILY MINER AND NEWS



 

Consul-General to Japan Takako Ito was in Kenora late last week to speak with Kenora residents about strengthening social and economic ties between Japan and Canada.

The Consul-General of Japan in Toronto paid a visit to Kenora last week with hopes of strengthening the social, cultural and economic bonds between Canada and Japan – including business collaborations with companies in Kenora.

Consul-General Takako Ito delivered a presentation to residents at the Kenora Rotary Club dinner Thursday, Sept. 26. She discussed Japan and Canada’s long and primarily peaceful relationship.

Japan and Ontario share 14 sister cities, which are a form of legal or social agreement between two municipalities to promote cultural and commercial ties. Kenora’s sister city in Japan is Shimokawa, a small town of approximately 3,800 people. According to Ito, Kenora and Shimokawa have been sister cities since 1992.

“I wanted to visit all of those 14 while I’m in Canada,” Ito said. She added that part of her job includes finding opportunities for Japanese businesses to work in various areas of Canada.

At Thursday’s dinner, Ito discussed trade opportunities between Ontario in Japan: she highlighted Canada’s abundance of natural resources compared to Japan’s lack thereof. According to the federal government, Canada exported $12.9 billion worth of goods to Japan in 2018, primarily canola, coal, copper ores, pork, lumber and wheat (that year, Canada received $16.8 billion worth of imports from Japan).

Given the prevalence of the forestry and mining industries in the region, companies in the area could have an opportunity to do business. The Consul-General told the Miner and News that a Japanese company visited Kenora this week to talk business with a Canadian company in the mining industry, but did not divulge the Japanese company’s name.

“In order to succeed, they have to have good cooperation with the community,” she said.

In terms of what Japan could offer Kenora, Ito referred to one area of Japanese culture she’s focused on promoting in Canada: food and drinks. She said, given Kenora’s popularity as a tourism destination in the summer, more options for Japanese cuisine may be welcome.

“That would give another aspect of variety to the tourists who are coming here to enjoy international cuisine,” she said.

The Consul-General was in town for a couple of days, leaving Friday for Winnipeg. She said she found Kenora “very charming.”

“When I first arrived at the airport, it reminded me of Hokkaido, the northern part of Japan where I was born,” she said.