Estonia, Legislation, Technology, Telecomunications

Photo: mkm.ee

"Japan uses a My Number card similar to the Estonian ID-card, therefore the ministers there were interested primarily in cooperation in e-government and cyber security. With the minister of internal affairs and communications we agreed on a plan to sign a cooperation agreement in information  and communications technology between Estonia and Japan," Palo said upon concluding a two-day visit to Japan.

The business delegation accompanying the Estonian minister on the trip included executives from several Estonian ICT startups making their entry into the Japanese market, such as Planetway Europe, Teleport, Ohuloss, and Archibus Solution Center Hosting Services.

Together with the Japanese minister of economy, trade and industry a so-called matchmaking seminar will be held for businesses. The second focus of the seminar, besides the digital sector, would be on the tourism, wood and food industry, Palo said. "We organized a similar event in Tokyo last year as well and the feedback from businesses was very positive. New cooperation partnerships were established and investors were found thanks to the event with whom agreements have been signed already," the minister said.

The Estonian ambassador to Japan, Jaak Lensmend, described good diplomatic relations between the two countries as very important for the local business community.

"The more consistent is interaction between the governments of Estonia and Japan, the more businesses here have interest in cooperation with Estonians," he said.

Palo met during the visit with Japan's Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Seiko Noda, Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Hiroshige Seko and the chair of the group for interparliamentary relations between Estonia and Japan, Takuya Hirai. Meetings also took place with managers at the telecommunications giant NTT and the technology group Fujitsu.