Investing in Japan

Saga

The information below is as of March 2011.

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• Basic Information
• Regional Profile
• Available incentives
• Links to Related Websites

Basic Information

Population*1	0.85 million
Labor force*1	0.44 million
Area*2	2,440 km²
GDP*3	2,923,844 million yen
Major industries	Food/beverage products, electrical machinery, general machinery and equipment, metal products and chemicals
Developing industries	Distribution, and transport machinery and equipment
Offices in Japan	Tokyo / Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture
JETRO office	JETRO Fukuoka

*1 Population Census 2010, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications　*2 Area data 2010, Geospatial Information Authority of Japan *3 Prefectural Citizens' Economic Accounts 2008, Cabinet Office

*Ask the local government for the latest data.

Regional Profile

Strength of the region's industries and economy

Amongst all prefectures in Kyushu which locates geographically closest to Asia in Japan, Saga Prefecture is a strategically important region for transportation. Therefore, a good balance of companies is located here, such as: processing and assembly companies from the fields of electric machinery and general machinery; primary materials companies from the fields of chemicals and metal products; producers from the fields of food and beverage.
Its geographically superior characteristics enable it to support the activities and strategies of global companies.

Strength of the region's education/research institutes

Operating in Saga Prefecture is the Kyushu Synchrotron Light Research Center, which can be utilized for a wide range of purposes, including research into many kinds of manufacturing from ultrafine processing to the development of new materials, etc., life sciences utilizing an extremely high analytical capacity, and even the assessment of cultural properties and criminal investigations; the Saga University Institute of Ocean Energy (promoting science and technology pertaining to ocean energy); the Kyushu Center of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (an independent administrative agency involved in research into micro- and nano-space technology and other fields); and other core research facilities. In terms of its educational institutions, Saga Prefecture is characterized by a heavy presence of industrial, information and other engineering related study courses at the college and high school level alike. The prefecture’s IT-oriented vocational schools are also well developed, and turn out young technicians rich in creativity who are well trained and positioned to contribute to the Kyushu region as a thriving “techno island.”

Strength of the region's industry-government-academia collaboration

In order to promote technological innovation among companies in the prefecture and use it to create new businesses, Saga Prefecture has been implementing the Project for the Support of Technological Innovation through Industry-Academia-Government Collaboration. We have formed an industry-academia-government team which is providing integrated support for every aspect from the identification of needs to the provision of the research results of universities, etc., to companies, research and development, and the development of sales channels.
In particular, the objectives of the project are the identification of regional and industry needs, and encouraging companies within the prefecture to get involved in research and development based on industry-academia-government collaboration, and we are holding multiple seminars and events throughout the prefecture.
For promising research themes discovered through coordination, we provide support in the form of subsidies for feasibility tests in order to competitively obtain funds from the national government, etc., and we also provide support for the development of sales channels, etc. so that research results can be commercialized.

Strength of the region's infrastructure

Saga Prefecture is located at the northwestern part of Kyushu, while being blessed with a mild climate and few natural disasters. It also occupies a key hub where many expressways serving Kyushu intersect, enabling the Chugoku region of Japan to be reached from all parts of Kyushu within 3 hours. From Saga meanwhile, Seoul is only a 70-minute flight away, with flying time to Shanghai 90 minutes. In this way, Saga Prefecture occupies a strategic geographical point in Kyushu that places it closer to Asian destinations than any other prefecture on the island.

<Land>

Tosu Junction (Tosu JCT) is the intersection between the Kyushu Expressway, which cuts across Kyushu from north to south, and the Nagasaki-Oita Expressway, which runs from east to west. This provides superior convenience.
Construction is progressing rapidly on the Western Kyushu Expressway, which will link the northwestern part of Saga Prefecture with Fukuoka City. Efforts are underway to build central transportation facilities for Kyushu in the future.

<Air>

In Saga Prefecture, only a short travel time is required to Ariake Saga Airport, Fukuoka Airport, or Nagasaki Airport. Travelers can select from among these three airports.

<Sea>

Since ancient times, northwestern Saga Prefecture has served as a gateway for continental culture. Today, Karatsu Port and Imari Port have been developed as major ports and become international trading ports.

<Railway>

Saga Prefecture has outstanding transportation access, well suited to the age of high-speed distribution. Tosu City is a hub of railroad transportation, situated at the intersection of the JR Kagoshima Main Line, Nagasaki Main Line, and Kyudai Main Line and Tosu Freight Terminal is well-developed. Transport services will be further improved when the Kyushu Shinkansen Line's Kagoshima Route and Western-Kyushu Route are completed.

(Related information)

• Research / Technical support: Kyushu Synchrotron Light Research Center
• Research / Technical support: Institute of Ocean Energy, Saga University

Foreign company(s) operating in the industry

Although only one foreign company has advanced operations to Saga Prefecture to date, the intent is to continue to use PR for Saga’s close proximity to Asia and other merits to attract companies studying possible advances to Japan from here on as well.

Company name	ANYTEKSYS (a local subsidiary "K.K. Kachi Joho")
Industry sector	Manufacture and sales of automatic issuing machines (ID, etc.), network certification machines and other hardware.
Date of entry	April 2008
Motivation for selecting region	The company is planning a full-fledged business advance to Japan from this year as well, and based on its past joint development in the automatic issuing machine field with Saga City, has chosen Saga City as its locating site.

Available incentives

<Subsidies to promote the establishment of companies>
Subsidies to promote the establishment of factories, etc. and distribution facilities
Subsidies for the investments and employment expenses of companies in the manufacturing industry establishing factories, experiment and research facilities, or distribution facilities (a maximum of 3 billion yen depending on the relevant conditions)

<Subsidies to promote the establishment of business support service companies>
Subsidies for the investments and employment expenses of companies establishing business support service companies (a maximum of 500 million yen depending on the relevant conditions)

<Tax incentive program> Eligible businesses are exempted from the prefecture's business tax for five years, then pay only half of the regular amounts for the next five years; and they are exempted from real estate acquisition tax (however, as an optional alternative to the subsidies to promote the establishment of companies)
*Some municipalities also offer incentives such as subsidies or a five-year exemption plus five-year reduction in fixed-asset tax.

Links to Related Websites

Local governments and related organizations

• Official website: Saga Prefectural Government

Research and development

• Kyushu Synchrotron Light Research Center
• Institute of Ocean Energy, Saga University

Transportation / living

• Healthcare: SAGA Medical Institution & Emergency Medical Information System "99　SagaNet"
• International exchange: Saga Prefecture International Relations Association