A general meeting of the Wakayama IR Promotion Council held in Wakayama City on 1 May found renewed recognition that an IR would lead to local tourism and industry development.
The promotion council is made up of 100 companies based in the prefecture and working toward Wakayama’s IR bid.
“The Post-COVID economic environment will be harsh without IR. We want to win the bid at all costs to stimulate the economy,” said Council Chairman Masaaki Shirako during the meeting.
Yoshikatsu Ohara, President of Suncity Group Holdings Japan, one of Wakayama’s two candidate operators, was also in attendance.
“Wakayama has a unique history, cuisine and nature to share,” Ohara said.
The promotion council adopted a resolution for the prefecture, stating, “We urge the prefecture to make a plan that fully respects the opinions of the selection committee and make decisions for the citizens that promise stable financial management of Wakayama.” The resolution will be submitted soon.
Wakayama prefecture is currently in the midst of its operator selection process and is expected to name the successful bidder imminently. Suncity Group and Canada’s Clairvest Neem Ventures are the two companies to have taken part in Wakayama’s RFP.