Japanese city open to IR development; defers to national government nod

Japanese city Wakayama will wait for developments in the national government before considering the development of an integrated resort (IR) in the city.

Original story by GGRASIA

The governor of Japan’s Wakayama prefecture, Shuhei Kishimoto, has said the prefectural government should consider the possibility of developing an (IR) with a casino if the national government launches a second round of applications.

He made the remarks on Wednesday, during a presentation at the Kansai Press Club in Osaka city.

“When the government launches the next application window, the prefecture should think about that,” said Mr Kishimoto, according to GGRAsia’s Japan correspondent.

The Wakayama prefecture closed in June last year the office that had coordinated its tilt at getting a casino complex.

In April 2022, Wakayama’s prefectural assembly rejected the local government’s plan for an IR, citing concerns over the funding arrangements and the developer’s capability.

The Japanese national government’s deadline for prefectures to submit casino-resort proposals passed on April 28 last year, with only two applications submitted by then.

Japanese local governments have mixed policies towards IR. Yokohama, with its recently-elected mayor, rejected IR applications in the city and even closed the city’s IR promotions office.

Recently, the government of Japan appointed its new secretary general for its Casino Regulatory Commission

Osaka’s IR District Development Plan was approved in principle in April by the national authorities, with just under 66 percent of the available assessment points.

Nagasaki’s IR District Development Plan is still to be approved by the national authorities. The government of Nagasaki Prefecture said recently it thought there was “still a chance” its development proposal for an IR will be approved by the central government.

It is unlikely any casino resort will become operational in Japan before the end of the current decade.

In his Wednesday’s comments, the Wakayama governor suggested that from a financial standpoint, the IR business could be “quite risky”.

To learn more about the implications of this development in Wakayama prefecture, including Kishimoto’s comments on Chinese policy, read the original article by GGRASIA here