Activities to Introduce Japanese Culture in Mexico

Sumitomo Corporation (Head Office: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director, President and Chief Executive Officer: Kuniharu Nakamura) took part in a number of activities to introduce Japanese culture in three cities in the Mexican state of Guanajuato over the four-day period November 30–December 3.

Sumitomo Corporation has on occasion organized activities at its overseas business locations to introduce local communities to traditional Japanese culture in order to build good relations. In conjunction with the Japan Festival recently held by an association of Japanese companies operating in Guanajuato (Asociación Guanajuato Hiroshima Amigo), Sumitomo Corporation employees were dispatched to join in events introducing Japanese culture at local government facilities and dining establishments. The Japan Festival was hosted in the three cities of Salamanca, Silao, and Irapuato, and demonstrations of kimono wearing and ikebana (flower arrangement) over a three-day period from November 30 helped deepen exchange with a total of around 700 participants that included member company employees, government officials, and automotive industry representatives.

Sumitomo Corporation employees also took part in the December 3 Mazda Matsuri celebrating Japanese culture that was sponsored by Mazda de Mexico Vehicle Operation (MMVO), an automobile manufacturing joint venture between Sumitomo Corporation and Mazda Motor Corporation. About 13,000 MMVO employees and family members came to the festival, turning it into an opportunity for a whole host of people to enjoy cultural exchange.

Sumitomo Corporation will continue actively undertaking similar activities worldwide.

[Introducing Japanese culture]

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■Sumitomo Corporation’s Material Issues
Sumitomo Corporation Group positions “Six Material Issues to Achieve Sustainable Growth with Society” as an important factor in developing business strategies and in the decision-making process for individual businesses. Going forward, we will pursue sustainable growth by resolving these issues through our business activities. This project especially contributes to “the Development of Local Communities and Industries” .