JICA's little-known efforts to support the Osaka-Kansai Expo

Many developing countries supported by JICA are participating in and exhibiting at the Osaka-Kansai Expo. Although you may not notice JICA's presence at the Expo site, JICA is actively contributing to the Expo through a variety of initiatives behind the scenes.

Have you had a chance to visit the Expo currently being held on Yumeshima Island, Osaka? Among the 158 participating countries and regions, about 70% are engaged in collaborative projects with JICA. At the Expo site, you can also explore some of JICA’s initiatives. In this article, we'll guide you through some of those locations.

One of the first places we recommend visiting is the Commons Pavilion. Located inside The Grand Ring, it is open to the public without need for a reservation. Despite being lively and crowded every day, you won’t have to wait long to enter. JICA is deeply involved in this pavilion. From March 2023 to July 2024, JICA supported to representatives from the 84 countries that were originally scheduled to exhibit at the Expo, providing hands-on guidance in Japan to help them create engaging displays. Most of these countries are presenting their exhibits in the Commons-A, B, and D (“Type C”).

In past World Expos, common pavilions were often organized by region, such as the “Africa Pavilion.” However, at this Expo, under the overarching theme of “Designing Future Society for Our Lives,” the exhibits are divided into three subthemes: Commons-A focuses on “Empowering Lives,” Commons-B on “Connecting Lives,” and Commons-D on “Saving Lives.” JICA has worked closely with participating countries to support the development of exhibition plans aligned with these subthemes. Beyond the Commons Pavilion, JICA has also collaborated with eight countries—Egypt, Cambodia, Senegal, Tunisia, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Mozambique, and Jordan—on their exhibitions. These are categorized as “Type B,” where independent exhibition spaces are set up within facilities constructed by the Expo Association. Additionally, it has been confirmed that Japan's international cooperation is featured in the exhibits of several countries, including Uganda, Ghana, Samoa, Vanuatu, and Palau (all in Commons-A), the Dominican Republic (Commons-B), Bhutan (Commons-D), and Bangladesh. We encourage you to visit the venue to see how these contributions are being presented.

Upon entering through the Expo West Gate, you will immediately notice a building on your right that resembles a white bowl. This is the “Junior SDGs Camp”, where daily programs are held for students ranging from elementary to high school. Among these programs, JICA Overseas Cooperation Volunteers currently serving abroad take part as instructors. Projected onto a screen, the volunteers report live from their host countries and respond to questions from Expo visitors in real time. These live interactions between the Expo venue and the volunteers are also broadcast on the large LED screens installed at JICA Kansai. If you are visiting Kobe, please be sure to stop by and take a look.

After leaving the Junior SDGs Camp, continue straight ahead while keeping the EXPO Arena on your left. On your right, you will soon see the “Future Life Village,” easily recognizable by its leaf-shaped roof. Inside the village, the “Best Practices Area” features panels and videos introducing JICA's initiatives.

Activities aimed at realizing the Expo theme, “Designing Future Society for Our Lives” are known as “Co-Creation Challenges.” One such initiative, “Building a Sustainable Future Through Co-Creation: JICA Kansai/DRLC's Disaster Risk Reduction Platform,” is led by the Disaster Reduction Learning Center (DRLC), jointly established by JICA and Hyogo Prefecture in 2007. This project was selected as one of 25 “BEST PRACTICE” from over 2,000 activities worldwide. During the Expo, JICA's initiatives are showcased in a permanent exhibition. Visitors can take home ribbon keychains themed around projects they resonate with. These are popular and limited to 100 per day, so we recommend arriving early in the morning to get one.

In addition, JICA is collaborating with “EARTH MART,” one of the Expo's signature pavilions produced by Kundo Koyama, to collect “Receipts of the World”, visual records of one week's worth of meals from households around the world. JICA has also hosted and co-hosted a variety of events throughout the Expo period, with more planned in the coming months. For details, please visit the JICA website and be sure to stop by the Expo venue!

Japan World Expo Osaka 1970 . My kindergarten had a color television, which was still rare at the time. I vividly remember watching the opening ceremony with my teachers and friends. It was a dazzling world unlike anything I had ever seen. Back then, when people talked about the future, they talked about the World Expo. I begged my parents to take me, I absolutely wanted to go. But for a child living in Niigata, Osaka felt incredibly far away. In the end, my childhood dream of visiting the World Expo didn’t come true. Now, fifty-five years later, the World Expo returned to Osaka, and I have finally realized that dream. At the Expo site, I often see young children. It may be difficult for JICA to leave a lasting impression on their memories. However, the experience of the Expo, where JICA has participated and collaborated, will surely leave a deep mark on their hearts.