2025 Expo Osaka: Event Also for Business Networking; Discovering Demand in Overseas Markets

By Yukiho Takaichi and Ken Tsuzuki / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

16:45 JST, April 13, 2025

World Expos bring together a large number of people from various countries over a six-month period, and the events have come to be seen as a networking opportunity for international businesses.

The Expo 2020 Dubai held in the United Arab Emirates from 2021 to 2022, is said to have been successful in facilitating such networking.

According to the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), a local business organization in Dubai organized 98 events at the Dubai Expo, drawing more than 25,000 participants from about 130 countries and regions.

Participating countries have high hopes for the Osaka-Kansai Expo as well. JETRO said it has received more than 120 requests from about 60 countries and regions to hold business forums and seminars, and arrangements are underway to make their requests a reality.

When seeking a Japanese company to work with, industrialized countries usually focus on specific areas, such as health and medicine or the environment, according to JETRO.

On the other hand, emerging countries typically see the Expo as an opportunity to introduce their countries to Japan and attract investment.

Britain plans to send more than 15 business delegations to the event. Carolyn Davidson, Britain’s commissioner general to the Osaka-Kansai Expo, said business programs are an important element of the Expo.

The event is also expected to provide Japanese companies with business opportunities.

Medical Edge, one of small and medium-sized companies in Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, which sells remote medical support systems, plans to attend business meetings organized by JETRO.

“People from various countries will be coming together, so we may discover demand in places we didn’t expect,” said Yoshiko Mita, the company’s president.

Due to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff policy, a sense of uncertainty is looming over businesses with the U.S. market.

“The Expo will be a chance for Japanese companies to find markets other than the United States,” said JETRO Chairperson Norihiko Ishiguro.