Japan Day Düsseldorf/NRW

Düsseldorf Celebrates Cultural and Economic Ties Between Japan and Germany

DÜSSELDORF, Germany, April 21, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

For the 16th time, on 20 May the German-Japanese stronghold of Düsseldorf will be transformed for over 600,000 Japan fans into a place for dialog with the culture and people of this Far Eastern country. With some 7,000 Japanese citizens living in Düsseldorf, the city has one of the biggest Japanese communities in Europe. With Japan Day, the state capital Düsseldorf - in cooperation with the Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the Japanese community - is staging a major culture festival, thus establishing a unique tradition. Japan Day is jointly organised as a project between German and Japanese citizens. The German-Japanese Economic Forum, which takes place in Düsseldorf on 22 May, reflects the importance of the economic relations between the two countries as well as the strength of the Japanese economic base in NRW and Düsseldorf where more than 600 Japanese companies build the biggest Japanese business community in continental Europe. This year's theme of this business forum is "Innovation through Cooperation - New Success Strategies for Companies in the Digitalised and Globalised Economy". The strength of this Japanese base in NRW and Düsseldorf with around 600 Japanese companies is underpinned by this event.

     (Photo: http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/491679/Dusseldorf_Japan_Tag.jpg )

More than 7,000 Japanese citizens live in Düsseldorf - around one quarter of all Japanese citizens in the Federal Republic of Germany - a figure that confirms the NRW state capital's importance for the relationship between the two countries. Overall more than 380 Japanese firms are based in the state capital; in North Rhine-Westphalia as a whole 600 Japanese companies employ around 32,000 people. In addition to the Japanese Consulate-General, Düsseldorf is also home to a dedicated Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry as well as the Japanese External Trade Organisation, a Japanese school and kindergartens, and the Japanese Club with some 4,000 members. Japanese people are an integral part of Düsseldorf and play an active role in all aspects of urban life. The Japan Day Düsseldorf/NRW and the German-Japanese Economic Forum have been taking place since 2002 and both events serve to build interpersonal, cultural and economic bridges between the two countries.