Brasília – Japan’s ambassador to Brazil, Akira Yamada, said this Monday (8) in Brasília that the passing by the National Congress of reforms including the Social Security one could encourage Japanese companies to invest in the country.
“I am certain that if the reforms come to pass, many Japanese companies will look to Brazil again, to enter the market and step up investments,” he said regarding Brazilian-Japanese economic cooperation. He gave the statement during a solemn session marking the 111th anniversary of Japanese immigration to Brazil.
“The world’s third biggest economy, Japan provides many opportunities and a huge potential for exports from Brazil. Japan is Brazil’s longest-standing partner in Asia, with technical cooperation going back 60 years. The Brazilian government is working to kickstart Mercosur-Japan trade talks, to improve access to Brazilian agribusiness products, to diversify our exports and to attract new Japanese investments,” said the Brazilian Foreign Ministry’s Japan and Pacific Department director Cecília Ishitani.
The session, which was proposed by senator Leila Barros, retraced the arrival, in June 1908, of ship Kasato Maru at São Paulo’s Port of Santos, with 781 Japanese citizens employed in farms throughout the state.
Brazil is currently home to the largest Japanese descendant population in the world, at around 2 million people. The solemnity also featured Japanese folk dance and judo presentations.
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
