Prime Minister, Hon. James Marape has arrived in Osaka, Japan to participate in the 2025 World Expo and promote Papua New Guinea’s trade and investment opportunities to Japanese and world audiences.

The Prime Minister will highlight his participation by officiating at the PNG National Day on Monday, 21 July 2025 at the expo site on Yumeshima Island, as he prepares to travel to Tokyo on Tuesday, 22 July 2025 to engage in the formal part of his Japanese engagement.

In Tokyo, Prime Minister Marape will hold bilateral talks with Japanese Prime Minister His Excellency Shigeru Ishiba and members from the Japanese private sector.

Prime Minister Marape said the focus of his meeting with the Japanese Prime Minister is to discuss a trade framework between Papua New Guinea and Japan to anchor further the long- standing relationship between the two countries.

He said with International Monetary Fund’s economic assessment that PNG has improved its growth rate, with a forecast of 4.7 percent this year 2025, the country is now better placed in terms of trade, and strong partners such as Japan will continue to be needed to provide the markets for PNG’s raw materials.

He said, “Japan is one of our top three trading partners, as it has continued to exhibit strong engagement over the last 51 years since we entered into this bilateral arrangement.

“In the midst of many trade contests, we want a specific trade relationship with Japan with no tariffs either way. The focal point of my conversation with the Japanese Prime Minister will be a trade framework to anchor further our existing partnership.

“Japan needs more energy, more coffee, cocoa, vanilla and agricultural produce while we need their machinery, vehicles and manufactured products. We also need Japanese investors in our country.

“The meeting with the Prime Minister is an important one as it will secure the relationship of our two countries for the next 50 years,” said Prime Minister Marape.

Before his departure on Tuesday morning to Tokyo, PM Marape will officiate at the PNG National Day on Monday evening, and visit the PNG National Pavilion during the day.

The PNG National Day is the main showcasing event promoting PNG’s participation, and will feature cultural performances and high-level engagements.

PM Marape said, “Papua New Guinea’s participation at the 2025 World Expo is a bold statement of our readiness to engage with the global community. The exposition has accorded us the right platform to present our country’s cultural richness and economic potential, and we aim to project the image of a resilient, globally-minded Papua New Guinea that is ready to do business with any country in the world.”

The Prime Minister emphasized Papua New Guinea’s strong, enduring partnership with Japan, and thanked the Government of Japan for hosting the 2025 World Expo in their two cities, Tokyo and Osaka.

He stressed the significance of the Expo 2025 as a platform for countries to come together to share ideas, forge partnerships, and pursue a more inclusive, sustainable, and innovative future.

“Our participation is not only to celebrate who are, but to continue extending our hand of friendship to Japan and the world. Through our National Pavilion, we tell the story of a resilient people, a thriving natural environment, and an emerging economy ready to take its place in the Asia-Pacific and beyond,” he said.

As the 2025 Expo marks its halfway point, the PNG Pavilion has already recorded remarkable visitor numbers, reflecting strong global interest in the nation’s culture, natural beauty, and economic opportunities. Over the past three months since the opening of the expo, hundreds of thousands of internal visitors have engaged with the pavilion’s displays, informational material, and business showcases eager to learn more about PNG to consider it as a destination for tourism, trade, and investment.

Some highlights of the 2025 Expo include: 1 million visitors in just 13 days after opening on

13 April 2025; 162,000 visitors in one day by late May; 10 million visitors as of 29 June; and organisers aim to receive 28.2 million visitors at expo closing on 13 October.