Speech by Ambassador Yamamoto at the opening ceremony of Fujitsu Greenhouse Technology Finland Oy

2016/11/25
Mr. Mikkonen, thank you very much.
Mr. Markus Suomi of Finpro, Distinguished Guests, Dear Colleagues,
 
It is my great pleasure to join you on this occasion to witness the initiation of Fujitsu Greenhouse Technology Finland Oy.  This is an example of the most recent business partnership between Japan and Finland, and can perhaps be one of the most promising collaborations, I suppose.
 
The dynamism of Finland can be described with a number of concepts and contexts.  I always love to say “systematized approach towards digital ecosystem”, that is the phrase, I believe, best describing a common social agenda of Finland. 
 
The Lindkoski project is very relevant to this agenda, aims at creating the ICT ecosystem to respond to commercial and climatic requirements, thus it deserves a very close attention.  The artificial sunshine at Lindkoski will also be an exciting idea.  Finns are the sunshine-loving people anyway.
 
This year in March, the President of the Republic, President Niinistö made a visit to Japan, and together with Prime Minister Abe, called Finland and Japan “base camps” for mutual businesses.  Base camp is a fascinating word, and it implies much more than a simple gateway.
 
This year in October, the delegation of Keidanren made a visit to Finland, met with President Niinistö and many political & business leaders, obtained a clearer image of Finland as a base camp, and identified many promising fields for further cooperation.  ICT/digital ecosystem is certainly one of the representative examples.
 
We today celebrate the Lindkoski project, and take one more step forward in the direction of business partnership of the two countries as I described.  With a lot of appreciation, I would like to congratulate Mr. Taniguchi, Mr. Mielonen, Mr. Aikawa and all the Fujitsu people, Mr. Robert Jordas and all the Robbes Little Garden Oy people, Mr. Tozawa of M2 Solution, and all the people who made it possible.
 
With a lot of confidence, I would like to congratulate Mr. Shinji Yoshioka for assuming the important position as the head of enterprise.  Under your leadership, this challenging project will be assured of its necessary success. 
 
The last but not the least, my appreciation goes to Mr. Suomi and his team of Finpro.  I trust upon your continued support for the project, very precious as ever and always reassuring support.