BAKU, Azebaijan, May 17. Developing sustainable cities and reinforcing earthquake-resistant infrastructure remain paramount priorities for global urban governance, Hideyuki Shiomi, Vice-Minister for Engineering Affairs at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism of Japan, said during a ministerial roundtable held within the framework of the 13th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13) in Baku, Trend reports.
The Japanese official stated that within its national infrastructure development framework, Japan is continuously expanding stringent seismic construction standards to maximize the overall resilience of buildings. He emphasized that in areas impacted by major disasters, comprehensive reconstruction efforts are strictly executed under the core principle of "Building Back Better."
According to Shiomi, Japan is systematically strengthening its transport and network infrastructure as part of its sustainable urban development and national spatial planning strategies. Furthermore, the government is actively incentivizing the relocation of creative human resources to revitalized regional areas.
He noted that through close cooperation with the United Nations, Japan consistently shares its extensive expertise in resolving housing challenges and advancing municipal planning with international partners.
The Japanese official reaffirmed that Tokyo will continue to disseminate its knowledge and practical experience in disaster risk reduction, post-disaster recovery and reconstruction, sustainable urban design, and the provision of affordable housing.
At the same time, it was underscored that the effectiveness of these global initiatives relies on creating open, collaborative platforms accessible to all nations—an effort Japan continues to champion in partnership with the UN.
Shiomi added that building on these sustainability commitments, Japan is slated to host the major international exposition "Green Episode 2027" in Yokohama next year.
