Article

Poland at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai

10.04.2024

Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, the largest and most important economic and promotional event in the world, will commence on 13 April 2025. Poland’s participation aims to strengthen its image on the international stage, establish new economic contacts and promote Polish science, culture and tourism.

The Polish Investment and Trade Agency is responsible for implementing the project under the supervision of the Ministry of Development and Technology.

• The Expo will be visited by 28 million people over six months, including 3.5 million foreign visitors.
• The motto of  Poland’s presentation is “Poland. Heritage that drives the future”.  
• The most important Expo events for Poland include two Polish-Japanese Economic Forums, Poland National Day,and the 3rd of May Constitution Day.

World Expositions – the idea  

World Expositions are the largest and most prestigious global events, combining economic, promotional, cultural and tourist themes. Their scale is comparable to that of the Olympic Games or the FIFA World Cup. Since the Great Exhibition of 1851 in London, which was the first, World Expositions have become the capital of the world for half a year, attracting crowds of visitors, from businessmen seeking new deals to tourists.

Initially, World Expositions were primarily a forum for sharing knowledge and scientific achievements, only to later  did they become a place for collective debate on the challenges of the modern world, technology, and development. The expositions also allow a wider public to discover or rediscover a given country through direct contact with National pavilions and organised events. For participating countries, the opportunity to showcase their culture, values, traditions and tourist attractions is as important as economic promotion.

Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai

The Osaka Prefecture will be hosting the World Expo for the second time, the first held in 1970 under the motto of “Progress and Harmony for Mankind.” It will also be the third time that Japan hosts an Expo, following the 2005 world exposition organised in the Aichi Prefecture, where the motto was “Nature’s Wisdom.”

The Expo is planned to take place from 13th April to 13th October 2025 in Yumeshima, an artificial island in Osaka Bay, Osaka, Kansai Region. Expo 2025 will be an opportunity to highlight cutting-edge Japanese achievements to the world, including in the area of transport. Flying taxis and hydrogen-powered craft for transporting visitors to the venue will be the symbol of the Expo. All payment transactions during the Osaka Expo will be cashless, making it the first-ever cashless World Expo, through which Japan will seek to popularise electronic payments.

The Expo’s theme, “Designing Future Society for Our Lives,” underlines the importance of bringing nations and people together through global cooperation, beyond all divisions, so that everyone has a chance to have a good life and a better future. It is also meant to motivate people to think about how they want to live, and how they may maximise their potential.

The theme comes to life through three sub-themes, relating to “Life”:

• Saving Lives – protecting and maintaining life, improving healthcare, ensuring safety through being prepared for natural disasters, producing harmonious co-existence of human beings with the natural environment;
• Empowering Lives – enriching the lives of individuals and expanding their potential, providing education with ICT, prolonging healthy lives through adequate diet and exercise, maximising human potential through AI and robotics;
• Connecting Lives – engaging everyone, building communities and enriching society.

At the same time, in line with the Organisers’ idea, the Exposition should be a so-called “People’s Living Lab”, an example of “Unity in Diversity”, and should encourage people to search for an answer to the question “What is the happy way of life?”.  

The 155-hectare Expo site will be divided into three parts: the Pavilion World, the Water World, and the Green World, surrounded by the Ring – a 20-metre-high, 2,000-metre-long pedestrian footbridge, with a diameter of 600 m – the biggest wooden structure in the world. The organisers expect 28 million visitors (mainly from Japan), including 3.5 million foreign visitors.

Poland at World Expositions

Poland has been present at Expos for over 150 years. In 1867, Paris showcased well-known Polish establishments, such as  the Małecki’s piano factory, Maksymilian Fajans’ photo studio, and Troetzer’s metal tool factory. Polish representatives won numerous awards at expositions in Vienna (1873), Paris (1878,1889) and Chicago (1893). The first National pavilions came about during the Interbellum, displaying Poland’s economic achievements, as well as its history and products. New York’s exposition in 1939 was the last to host Poland before World War II. Poland’s Pavilion was built on the area of 2 thousand square meters with a 50 m high tower and the statue of  king Władysław Jagiełło standing at its entrance.

Poland didn’t return to Expos for good until 1992, in Seville, going on to participate in World Expos in Lisbon (1998), Hannover (2000), Aichi (2005), Saragossa (2008), Shanghai (2010), Milan (2015), Astana (2017) and Dubai (2021). In Dubai,  Poland’s Pavilion, which had the theme  “Creativity inspired by nature,” received a Silver Medal for the best interior design awarded by the Organisers.

Over the years, building Poland’s image at Expos involved numerous presentations of the Polish economy, culture, and natural resources, and the commitment of institutional and commercial partners. The success of Poland at those events was often thanks to the spectacular architecture of the pavilions themselves, a direct testimony to Polish creativity.

Poland’s Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai

Poland’s main arena of presentation will be its National pavilion with an area of nearly 1000 m². The architecture reflects Poland’s motto  “gene of creativity” and its value for the future of societies. Poland’s Pavilion will be located near the Water World, which is one of the sub-themes of the Exposition – “Saving Lives”.

The architectural design is based on the use of wood, with an organic form thanks to arches and curves. The form resembles a spreading wave of Polish creativity and innovation – no border is a barrier for innovative ideas to spread and influence faraway lands, or for knowledge gained abroad to return to a Nation’s gravitational centre.

The design of the expressive wooden facade based on Kigumi Koho, a traditional timber joining technique, is a homage to traditional Polish and Japanese architecture. The pavilion will be accessible  and will be free of any barriers.

The multi-faceted journey through the exhibition  Poland ‘s Pavilion will be enriched by the creative legacy of Fryderyk Chopin. The works of this eminent Polish classical composer will  be performed during the planned cycle of piano recitals in the Pavilion’s concert room.

The architectural concept was designed by Alicja Kubicka and Borja Martínez –a  Polish-Spanish duo.  

Poland At Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai – the idea and objectives

Poland will be presented as a country, whose main resource is its people, who are creative, open-minded, well educated, imaginative and brave in their thought and effort.

Poland’s participation at the Expo is under the motto “Poland. Heritage that drives the future.” The Polish people build on their heritage, which inspires them to seek new answers to the challenges of the modern world. Polish cultural heritage produces an image of steadfastness, openness, solidarity and a willingness to cooperate; especially in historically difficult times, they demonstrate an enormous creative force in individuals and society at large. The “gene of creativity,” passed down from generation to generation, allows  the Polish people to act for a better future, supports flexibility in the face of unexpected global changes, and is a force that generates new concepts for social and technological solutions.

This idea is visible in the talent of Poles for finding new opportunities, and paying attention to the well-being that arises from nature and continuing creation.

Poland’s main objectives at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai include:

• building recognition of the brand of the Polish Economy – broad, multi-level promotion of the Polish economy, creativity of Polish companies and their innovative solutions;
• raising recognition of Polish products abroad and developing cooperation with non-European markets;
• developing economic cooperation with Japan – a market considered particularly promising in the context of Poland’s strategic industries – and with other countries in the region;
• strengthening Poland’s position as a safe destination for investment, especially for investments from technologically advanced areas requiring high-quality infrastructure and human capital;
• developing tourism from Japan and other Asian countries to Poland;
• promoting Polish culture.

Apart from business events, Poland’s half-year presence  at  Expo will feature numerous cultural and scientific events, including daily Chopin recitals. The most important ones including the official Opening Ceremony of the Poland Pavilion, the 3^rd of May Constitution Day (coinciding with the Japanese Constitution Memorial Day), as well as Poland’s National Day. On that day, Poland will present itself to the wide international audience at  Expo.

The Economic Programme

At the heart of Poland’s preparations for Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, lies the Polish entrepreneur, and the economic programme that will be implemented in cooperation with other business support institutions is a key element of the project. Poland’s cooperation offer is addressed to small and medium companies as well as large corporations, and involves promotional, organisational and financial support in expansion to Asian markets, and primarily the Japanese market.

The implementation of the economic programme will focus especially on industries that have been defined to have the largest export potential for Asian markets and be of the highest priority in trade relations with Japan. These include the following sectors: medical and pharmaceutical, cosmetics, the IT/FinTech, green technology (hydrogen), agri-food (including AgriTech), and gaming.

The Partner Programme

The Partner Programme enables Polish companies and institutions interested in a special form of participation at  Expo an opportunity of commercial cooperation, involving co-designing and co-equipping the Poland Pavilion and co-devising the event programme. It is an initiative that gives   entrepreneurs, regardless of their scale of operations, a one-of-a-kind chance to promote themselves, reinforce plans of foreign expansion, and co-create  Poland’s presentation during the most prestigious global economic and promotional event. The Partner Programme includes the following options for participation: Equipment for the Poland Pavilion, Accompanying Events, Sponsorship for Accompanying Events, and Strategic Partnership.

Training programme presenting the Japanese market

As part of the preparations for Polish companies to take part in Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, between January and November 2024 there will be a series of industry webinars/hybrid seminars for Polish entrepreneurs interested in establishing trade relations with Japan or considering expanding their investments in that country. The training sessions are the first step towards international expansion for many Polish companies and a chance for those who already export to these markets to gain new knowledge. Participants will get more insight into the specific nature of the Japanese market and a chance to prepare for missions to industry fairs organised before or during the World Expo. The programme includes webinars for the agri-food, green technology, cosmetics, medical and pharmaceutical, gaming, as well as IT/Fintech sectors.

Business missions and study visits for Japanese journalists

A series of business missions for Japanese companies, combined with study visits for Japanese journalists, should serve to acquaint those representatives of companies and media with Poland’s achievements and the offering of companies operating in industries most promising for Japan. The missions will be coupled with industry events taking place in Poland, gathering representatives of Polish companies, including entrepreneurs interested in expanding their operations to the Japanese market.

Promotion of the brand of innovative SMEs

“Promotion of the brand of innovative SMEs” dedicated to small and medium-sized companies, implemented in a competition formula by PARP as part of the EU’s Programme “European Funds for the Modern Economy” is a continuation of the idea of building Poland’s image  on the international arena based on the Brand of the Polish Economy, while using the export and innovation potential of Polish entrepreneurs. The project’s budget is PLN 100 million, the beneficiaries of which can allocate the obtained funds to:

• financing  trade missions to Japan, participation in trade fairs,
• promotional activities,
• participation in one of the Economic Forums implemented as part of the economic program of Poland’s presence at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai.

Details of the competition will be available on the PARP website.

Polish Technological Bridges

Polish Technological Bridges is addressed to small and medium-sized enterprises eligible for de minimis aid, whose products or services are technologically advanced. The programme is aimed primarily at companies with export experience, and involves substantive support in preparing a foreign expansion plan and advisory by experienced experts from  Foreign Trade Offices, of the Polish Investment and Trade Agency (ZBH/PAIH); knowledge on export through participation in workshops and webinars; and an option to reduce the costs of entering a given market. To be eligible, the enterprise must not yet be present on the Japanese market (unless it is a new offer); support involves reimbursing eligible costs incurred. Recruitment is planned for the first half of 2024.

Polish-Japanese Economic Forums

The forums are organised as part of the celebrations of the 10th anniversary of the strategic partnership between Poland and Japan, and will be Poland’s most important economic events at the Osaka Expo. They will include Government visits, missions of Polish entrepreneurs, as  well as cultural events (concerts, exhibitions) and economic events (B2B meetings, study visits, fairs). The Polish-Japanese Export Forum is planned for May 2025, whereas the Polish-Japanese Investment Forum – for September 2025. Their main objective is to promote mutual economic contacts and present  Poland’s potential.

Industry events in Japan

These are events organised for industries deemed promising for Polish companies on the Japanese market and, more broadly, on Asian markets. The events, in a form adapted to the specific nature of the given industry, will be correlated with the National stands at international fairs planned in Japan for 2025, as well as with the calendar of events of  Expo’s organisers.

National stands at Japanese industry fairs

As part of the efforts to strengthen the image of Polish brands in Japan, during Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, institutions supporting the internationalisation of Polish companies plan to organise National stands during international fairs that will take place in Japan in 2025.