Kobe-Kansai, Japan

The Kobe-Kansai region comprises 10% of Japan's land area, with 24 million residents, 18% of Japan's population. It consists of eight prefectures; Osaka, Hyogo, Kyoto, Shiga, Nara, Wakayama, Mie, and Tokushima. The major cities of Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto, Ohtsu, Nara, Wakayama, Tsu, and Tokushima are all located in the Kansai region. This district has prospered as a biotech hub for many years, due to the longstanding success of brewing and pharmaceutical industries located here. The pharmaceutical and biotechnology-related companies and research institutes across the region form a unique cluster that make up the multilayered Kansai Bio Cluster ranked No.1 among Japanese regions.

Strongholds

There are 34 universities with biotech-related departments and 2,255 biotech-related university researchers presenting a formidable list of research facilities spearheading R&D. In the field of regenerative medical treatment, research centers that may become the world's core research centers include Kyoto University, Osaka University, and the Center for Developmental Biology, RIKEN. Moreover, the Kobe-Kansai region hosts many companies with financial strength and technological strength that can work with the leading pharmaceutical companies to create new medicines.

Get more information at http://www.ibri-kobe.org/english/index.html or by contacting the Ambassador Programme Team.