Global Festival Japan at Tokyo’s Hibiya Park, October 6-7, 2007

This festival, which is held annually in October, is one of the biggest events which showcases and exhibits international cooperation in Japan. The main organizers are the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). This year’s theme was “Family and Earth”, which is closely related to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

More than 200 organizations, including embassies, NGOs, international organizations and other development partners introduced their development cooperation activities. The number of visitors per day was reported to be 40,541 for October 6 (Saturday) and 38,804 for October 7 (Sunday) which added up to a grand total of 79, 345 (The number significantly increased by 12,645 from last year).

This festival is a good opportunity for the CGIAR to gain more public understanding and support in Japan. The CGIAR exhibited two new posters and the latest brochures sent from the CGIAR Secretariat and the Centers. Since JIRCAS is the CGIAR focal point institution in Japan, its staff kindly helped in the receiving and transporting of the brochures and they were also very helpful in introducing the Centers. The weather was excellent during the festival, and more people than usual in years visited our booth. All hand-outs, such as brochures, were given away before we closed the exhibition.

This festival provided an excellent opportunity for the public, especially young Japanese scientists and students to gain deeper understanding of the CGIAR.