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Doyle heads for Japan to aid business
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by Caroline Belloff
Friday, October 1, 2004
Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle departed Sept. 24 for a weeklong expedition to Japan in order to strengthen ties between the Asian nation and the Badger state. In 2003, Japan ranked the second-largest consumer for Wisconsin exports with an impressive $816.7 million in export revenue.
“Gov. Doyle’s goals are to create new relationships and strengthen old ones with business in Japan,” Doyle’s press secretary Melanie Fonder said. “Due to last year’s export figures, Japan’s high ranking has brought the governor to the nation to hopefully increase the relationship and successes and to attract Japanese investment.”
Twenty-nine business representatives and academic officials will accompany Doyle.
“More than 30 years ago, the Kikkoman Corporation recognized that Wisconsin is a great place to do business, and today their manufacturing facility in Walworth is a major employer,” Doyle said in a release about the benefit of Japanese assets. “As more Japanese companies are looking for a place to invest, we want them to choose Wisconsin. We may not have the same name recognition as California, but we have a great deal to offer and we plan to make our case aggressively to Japanese investors.”
Doyle commented Wisconsin offers a highly educated workforce, excellent quality of life, and leadership in technology. The governor said Wisconsin has a lot to offer to Japanese medical equipment, biotech and nanotech businesses hoping to establish a U.S. presence.
Doyle hopes to focus mainly on representing the biotechnological and agricultural benefits Wisconsin has to offer. Communications Director Tony Hozeny of the Department of Commerce addressed this investment initiative.
“By actually going to Japan and meeting the business associates on such a personal level, Gov. Doyle has the opportunity to sell Wisconsin as a place of investment,” Hozeny said, adding, Doyle hopes to establish operations and factories with many companies, such as Toyota and Honda. “This trip to Japan proves to be advantageous, because Gov. Doyle will be able to speak to the Japan External Trade Organization’s BIOLink Forum in person and hopefully further strengthen our ties to the country.”
Moreover, the people of Wisconsin expressed much interest in this journey, according to Hozeny. The international division of commerce sent representatives into the communities to conduct surveys and speak to different places of business to get a feel for the need to increase our personal and cultural ties with Japan.
“They also mailed information to various organizations and promoted the trip through newspaper articles and press releases,” Hozeny said. “After this comprehensive assessment it was evident that this type of trip could only benefit Wisconsin.”
Many other factors are attributed to Doyle’s decision to travel to Japan. The trip to Japan further promotes Doyle’s ‘Grow Wisconsin’ plan, Fonder explained.
“In the biotechnological field, increasing our ties with the Japanese will create a larger, high-end job market for Wisconsin residents,” she said. “With the expansion of this market, we will have many more high-end, high-paying jobs to offer our citizens.
“Additionally, the more countries that invest in our state add value to Wisconsin’s economic base,” Fonder added. “This will generally boost our economy.”
Anonymous (October 1, 2004 @ 10:32am):
Doyle pulls a Don Quixote - why is this news?
Anonymous (October 1, 2004 @ 10:55am):
Doyle going to Japan is irrelevant to students! James Block and the other LOCAL races are relevant. Why not talk about them instead of the sexy stories you all like so much?
