It will be the second World Expo to be held in Osaka Prefecture. To achieve many fruitful results, it is necessary to make all possible efforts to prepare well for the event.
A general assembly of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) was held in Paris. At the assembly, Osaka was elected to be the host of the World Expo 2025.
As a result of voting by BIE member states, Osaka won in a tight competition against Ekaterinburg in Russia and Baku in Azerbaijan, both of which were seeking to host their countries' first World Expo. Japan will be hosting its first World Expo in 20 years, since the 2005 World Exposition Aichi was held in Aichi Prefecture.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe issued a comment, stating that hosting the World Exposition will "trigger rejuvenation of the economy in the host region. [The country] will make utmost efforts."
The central government, which was backing the bid, expects the event will attract 28 million visitors and generate economic effects worth 2 trillion yen. If these projections are realized, the exposition will prove to be an effective event to boost the economy after the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
France, which had been regarded as a formidable candidate to host the event, withdrew from the bidding race in February. From then on, rivalry among the remaining three candidates became more intense.
Japan stressed the theme "Designing Future Society for Our Lives." By positioning Yumeshima, an artificial island in Osaka Bay that will be the exposition venue, as "an experimental field of future society," Japan promoted its plan for the expo, including such ideas as full use of artificial intelligence and other technologies throughout the event.
Japan also emphasized it had successfully hosted five global-scale expositions in the past. That seems to have contributed to winning the bid.
Ingenious efforts vital
When the 1970 Osaka Expo was held, it caused an enormous sensation across the nation, attracting as many as 64 million visitors. It became a historic event symbolizing the high-growth period.
The idea to host the 2025 exposition was ignited by the wish of political and business circles in the Kansai region that seek revitalization by hosting a world exposition again. The timing of the exposition is similar to when the 1970 exposition was held following the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. However, the historical backgrounds for these two times are totally different.
In a Yomiuri Shimbun survey of Osaka Prefecture residents, 60 percent of respondents said they are interested in hosting a world exposition. The figure at the national level would probably be lower.
It is important to clearly present the significance of hosting the event and heighten momentum toward it.
The estimated 125 billion yen cost of preparing the exposition venue will be shared equally among the central government, local governments and the business sector. However, discussions have yet to be deepened over how the portion assigned to the private sector will be procured. Compared with the World Exposition Aichi, which was held at the initiative of Toyota Motor Corp., the 2025 expo's slow start-up cannot go unnoticed.
How to stir up businesses' desire to invest in this event is a point that calls for exercising wisdom. Ingenious efforts to prevent the expansion of costs will be indispensable, too.
The Osaka prefectural and municipal governments plan to establish an integrated resort including a casino near the exposition site. They intend to ask relevant business operators to shoulder part of the cost for preparing the area around the venue through such projects as extending a subway line.
That stance of handling the exposition with gambling in an integrated manner is very questionable.
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Nov. 25, 2018)
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