Papua New Guinea (PNG) will participate in the perhaps the biggest world expo in Osaka Japan next year, and the word is, there will be an extra space apart from the allocated Pacific Pavilion, for the PNG team to better showcase the country to the rest of the world. The Minister for International Trade and Investment, Richard Maru confirmed this in a press conference this morning in Port Moresby city, when stating that PNG will not only have a pavilion at a shared pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, because the National Government has made a very important decision for PNG to secure a commercial space outside the Expo Site to display and market its products and services. “I’m happy to announce today that cabinet has decided that apart from our shared pavilion on the Expo Site in Osaka, Japan the Government has now agreed to grant or lease office space outside of the Expo site for us to allow provinces, government entities and the private sector to go to Japan during the six months to go and set up your own display booths and market their products, their goods and service,” the minister announced. “We are looking at agencies like the Tourism Promotion Authority to go and promote our country and tourism opportunities and products in Japan,” Minister Maru said, adding that Japan has a keen interest in PNG in terms of tourism, given its history as well with the country. The ministers said this additional space is a boost to PNG’s participation in the Expo because in the shared Pacific Pavilion, all the provinces, private sector and government agencies, and public enterprises will only be doing digital exhibition to market their products and services. “That is why our government has made an important decision to secure a commercial space by providing K3 million (additional) funding in principle in the budget for next year to make this possible with the support of our private sector and SOEs.” “We want to make a bigger impact in the Japanese market and in the world at this Expo so we will be leasing a commercial space outside the Expo Site at the Osaka Bay Area where we can display and sell our products and services and promote PNG as an exciting tourism and investment destination.” Meantime, the overall total expected to send a PNG team to the 2025 Osaka Expo is around K8.6 million to be funding by the government. Minister Maru said this is a modest amount as he expects the Expo to bring a whole lot more benefit to PNG, stating that the expected outcomes would outweigh the cost. Minister Maru added that this will also further strengthen and expand the trade relation between PNG and Japan, stating that it's time as well to venture into other areas of trade between the two countries. Traditionally, PNG exports mostly petroleum products to Japan, but it's high time PNG and Japan trade in agricultural products as well, and this Expo is the way to do it. The 2025 Osaka Expo will commence in April and will run for six months altogether.