MAIN PAGE | SPEECHES & EDITORIALS | 2001 | INVITATION TO TOKYO
PACIFIC BASIN ECONOMIC COUNCIL
MAIN PAGE | SPEECHES & EDITORIALS | 2001 | INVITATION TO TOKYO
|
An Invitation to Tokyo
AS WE WELCOME THE DAWN of the 21st Century, the Asia Pacific region is facing a myriad of exciting new opportunities and challenges. The spread of globalization and ongoing advancements in information technology are helping to drive economic growth and open up countless new possibilities beyond our previous imagination. At the same time, however, the Asia Pacific region faces a whole range of new risks and challenges being brought about by the onslaught of globalization and the IT Revolution. For this reason, it is now more important than ever for the business sector to take a leading role in promoting the frank discussion of the new issues and challenges that have been created by these changes, and help facilitate the international collaboration and cooperation necessary to meet the needs of the new era. PBEC's forthcoming International General Meeting in Tokyo, to be held with the theme "Regional Vitality in the 21st Century", will offer a wonderful opportunity for the business community to begin to construct a new framework to deal with the daunting opportunities and challenges of the new century. As the hosts of the PBEC 2001 IGM, we believe that we have developed a conference format that will ensure the success of the meeting and help facilitate regional vitality and prepare a foundation for continued prosperity in the 21st Century. The conference format that the Japan Member Committee has been eagerly developing together with the International Secretariat, which we refer to as a "3e(Triple-e)-conference", will be environmentally friendly and fittingly efficient for a meeting of international business people and apply IT technology to the greatest extent possible. Indeed, this "3e-conference" concept will be based on the theme of "3-e", namely "electronics", "environment" and "efficiency". We are confident that this conference format will help create an extremely efficient, environmentally friendly conference in which participants will find it much easier to network with other participants and keep up their discussions and build upon their contacts even after the meeting is over. This type of format will also better enable participants to foster even closer ties among regional economies, ties which will be needed as we all try to find how to best respond to the changes being brought about by globalization and the IT revolution. The IGM will take place in the scenic Tokyo Bay Area, which is renowned for its beautiful location and all new facilities, and has recently become one of the most popular meeting spots in Tokyo. Tokyo is a fascinating city with something to offer every visitor, as it combines the bustle and excitement of one of the most technological advanced cities in the world with 400 years of history and culture. We will have a wide range of tours and activities set up so that all of you can take advantage of this opportunity to experience Japan's fascinating traditions, as well as to witness firsthand Japan's resurgence in the 21st Century. I very much look forward to welcoming all of you to Tokyo in April, which is the very best time of the year for visiting our wonderful city. I will do my best to ensure that the cherry blossoms will be in full bloom for our conference, which will give all PBEC members a chance to enjoy Tokyo in its full beauty. |
Mr. Minoru Murofushi