NORTH ASIA
14
JAPAN
Hokkaido White IR Initiative
Michael Penn
Special correspondent, AGB Nippon
Local government at the starting gates Operators and local prefectures were busy in 2017 laying the groundwork to pitch for IR licenses ahead of the enabling legislation. Heading into 2018, here is the current state of play.
T
omakomai (Hokkaido Prefecture) took the lead among all local governments in advancing its process, holding an RFI before anyone else and already is deeply engaged with a number of international operators. Tomakomai might face a rival bid from within
its northernmost prefecture, as three other localities have signaled some degree of interest in hosting an IR and Governor Harumi Takahashi has not shown her hand, but the local government is nevertheless decidedly proactive. Sasebo (Nagasaki Prefecture), on the opposite
