British Columbia and Japan

Opportunity for Foreign Investors and B.C. Exporters

Aerospace

Japan’s aerospace sector is engaging in international joint development programs to meet the evolving needs of the commercial aircraft market. There exist R&D collaboration opportunities for B.C. companies as well as supply chain, maintenance, repair and overhaul opportunities.

Agrifood & Agritech

Considering Japan’s high population density, limited agricultural land and high awareness of environmental issues, there is a need for environmentally friendly fertilizers and pesticides. This creates opportunity for Agritech companies with unique ICT solutions and vertical farming technologies to enter Japan’s Agritech market.

Cleantech

Japan is transitioning to a carbon neutral economy and striving to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. There is space for B.C. companies in the hydrogen, electric vehicles, carbon capture utilization and storage technologies and sustainable plastic recycling markets.

Forestry

Japan acts as one of B.C.’s largest export markets for wood products. New opportunities have been presented for B.C. companies in wood construction, wood pellets and wood biomaterials.

ICT

The Japanese government has announced a new national Digital Agency to invest in I.T. systems across levels of government, among other incentives, to accelerate digitalization in the private sector. B.C. ICT companies can offer products and services pertaining to cybersecurity, machine learning and data management and analysis among many other ICT services.

Life Sciences

Among the world’s largest pharmaceutical and medical device markets is Japan’s life sciences sector. There is a wide range of opportunities for B.C. companies to implement operations in Japan’s life sciences market. Opportunities include innovation for new drugs, AI solutions for drug discovery, bioinformatic technologies and image processing and digital solution for diagnostics, among others.