Obuse Town and Glocal Launch Promotion of Sustainable Community Development through Public-Private Partnership and Exchange

（From top left of photo）Joji Itakura, Representative Director, Glocal Inc., Toru Omiya, Mayor of Obuse Town, Jun Kamiya, Director, Glocal Inc.,（From bottom left of photo）Rei Iijima, Dispatched from Glocal Inc., Kohei Morisako, Dispatched from Glocal Inc.

Obuse Town, Nagano Prefecture (Mayor: Toru Omiya; hereinafter: Obuse Town) and Glocal Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Joji Itakura; hereinafter: Glocal) have begun initiatives to promote community development through public-private partnership, utilizing the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications' Regional Revitalization Entrepreneur System*1.

On April 1, 2026, both parties signed a cooperation agreement regarding the dispatch of regional revitalization entrepreneurs and will proceed with initiatives aimed at solving regional challenges and creating new businesses in Obuse Town.

In this initiative, two Glocal employees will be dispatched to Obuse Town as regional revitalization entrepreneurs. Working in cooperation with local stakeholders, they will promote the launch and execution of projects that go beyond the conceptual stage, aiming for sustainable regional development.

*1 Regional Revitalization Entrepreneur System This initiative aims to revitalize regions by having companies located in the three major metropolitan areas (Saitama, Chiba, Tokyo, Kanagawa, Gifu, Aichi, Mie, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyogo, Nara prefectures) dispatch employees to local governments in regional areas for a certain period (6 months to 3 years) based on an agreement. These employees, utilizing their specialized know-how and expertise, engage in tasks as immediate contributors to address regional challenges faced by the local governments.

Background and Features of This Initiative

Public-Private Partnership Supporting Community-Led Initiatives Obuse Town has previously engaged in community development in cooperation with local businesses and the administration. This initiative will promote these community-led efforts as a foundation, while also leveraging external expertise.

Promotion System Centered on a Co-creation Platform The "Obuse Town-wide Revitalization Council"*2 will serve as the core, with commercial and agricultural businesses, the administration, and other stakeholders collaborating through thematic subcommittees to advance specific initiatives.

Integrated Promotion from Conception to Execution By promoting initiatives that not only involve the study of concepts but also foresee the launch and execution of projects in cooperation with stakeholders, the aim is to strengthen the region's implementation capabilities.

*2 Obuse Town-wide Revitalization Council This is a public-private co-creation platform where local agricultural and commercial businesses collaborate, establishing subcommittees for themes such as "Tourism Strategy" and "Securing and Developing Corporate Human Resources" to address challenges.

Objectives of the Initiative

Leveraging Glocal's accumulated knowledge in new business creation, this initiative will support Obuse Town's public-private co-creation efforts and promote the creation of an environment where businesses continuously emerge through collaboration among internal and external regional stakeholders.

Furthermore, in this initiative, the emphasis will be on respecting local autonomy and proceeding with stakeholders, rather than external personnel taking the lead.

Main Initiatives

(1) Operation Support for Co-creation and Exchange Platforms

- Support for the secretariat functions of the Revitalization Council - Support for planning and operating subcommittees, and consensus building

(2) Accompaniment Support for Business Creation

- Support for local businesses in considering new initiatives - Accompaniment through the process towards commercialization

(3) Promotion of Human Resource Circulation

- Support for initiatives such as work-based trial relocation and regional study abroad - Creation of mechanisms to promote continuous engagement with the region

(4) Co-creation of Projects to Solve Regional Industrial Issues

- Organization and review of issues in key industries - Promotion of initiatives through collaboration with local businesses and related organizations

Dispatch Period

Planned for up to 3 years from April 1, Reiwa 8 (2026).

Comment from Toru Omiya, Mayor of Obuse Town

Obuse Town has the "Obuse Town-wide Revitalization Council" as a platform where public and private sectors cooperate on initiatives, rather than through top-down administration. Since last year, we have reviewed the operating methods and are working to shift our stance so that local businesses can participate more actively in the council. However, generating new initiatives from such a platform is extremely difficult and requires specialized expertise.

We hope that Glocal Inc. will assist us in new policy formulation for Obuse Town's industrial policy and in public-private community development through the secretariat operations of this "Obuse Town-wide Revitalization Council."

Comment from Joji Itakura, Representative Director, Glocal Inc.

Glocal (including its parent company Primal Inc.) has supported the launch of new businesses for a wide variety of companies for approximately 20 years.

By utilizing our experience in business launch and the connections we have made with companies challenging new things through business launch, we will strive to create new businesses and new exchanges from Obuse.

Furthermore, we will accompany the town not just for tourism, but to make it a more attractive place for current residents of Obuse Town and for those who will become town residents through exchange in the future.

About Obuse Town, Nagano Prefecture

Obuse Town, Nagano Prefecture, is a town of chestnuts, Katsushika Hokusai, and flowers.