The Fukuoka Directive Council (Fukuoka D.C.), a public-private venture that aims to rejuvenate economic activity in the metro Fukuoka area, held a public forum on June 7. Forum participants agreed that it is important to attract more business travel, referred to as MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions), and to develop the Hakata Waterfront area in order to promote growth in Fukuoka’s city center. Fukuoka D.C. was founded by Fukuoka City and Kyushu University two years ago and now has 84 member organizations.
The forum proposed enhancing accessibility in four major areas—namely, (1) the Nakagawa riverfront, (2) Tenjin/Watanabe-dori, (3) the Hakata Station area and (4) the Hakata Port Waterfront— as keys to economic growth. In his speech, Marc Glaudemans, Director of the European Urban Design Laboratory, pointed out that having a centrally-located port is one of Fukuoka’s strengths but added that “most ports lack high added value for tourists because they are primarily industrial zones.” In the panel discussion, Mayor Takashima reported that “Fukuoka hosts the highest number of MICE events after Tokyo but is still lagging behind global competitors such as Pusan and Shanghai”. Source: Nishinippon Shimbun
