Skopje, 6 March 2024 (MIA) — The Free Zones Authority and JETRO Japan External Trade Organization signed Wednesday a Memorandum of Cooperation to promote investment opportunities between the two countries and boost cooperation between Japanese and Macedonian companies in several business sectors.

Director General of the Trade Policy Bureau at Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry Takehiko Matsuo led the Japanese delegation, which included JETRO Vienna general director Tatsuo Kamino and representatives of 11 Japanese companies.

Over the next three days, the delegation is set to hold meetings with Faculty of Computer Science and Engineering undergraduates and companies sponsored by the national Fund for Innovation and Technology Development as well as with members of the local business community.

"One of the pillars of the Memorandum we signed today is the possibility of promoting Macedonian and Japanese companies on reconstruction projects in Ukraine," Free Zones Authority head Jovan Despotovski said, adding that Japanese banks were interested in financing such projects, "which we expect will happen soon after the end of the conflict."

Despotovski said the Japanese business community representatives would hold talks with local businesspeople on "how to use our experience and our closeness to these markets so our companies, together with the Japanese companies, can get a part of that reconstruction cake."

The Memorandum of Cooperation is expected to encourage closer cooperation between Macedonian and Japanese companies and facilitate the entry of Japanese companies into the country.

"The idea of this visit was to provide an opportunity for Japanese companies to get to know the mentality in North Macedonia and its business activities, and to establish business connections between Japanese and Macedonian companies," JETRO Vienna director Kamino said.

"In the last few years, JETRO has been making intense efforts in building business connections, especially in the area of innovations. We hope this visit will establish a closer relationship between Japanese and startup companies in North Macedonia in this particular field," he added.

This is JETRO's second visit to North Macedonia. JETRO representatives first visited the country in 2019.

The Memorandum was signed also to mark the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Japan and North Macedonia. mr/