RIYADH – Manga Productions, a subsidiary of Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman's "Misk" Foundation, Friday opened its branch in the Japanese capital Tokyo. This is regarded as a landmark initiative reflecting the growth of the company's business through spreading its wings internationally as well as the success of its partnerships with the Japanese side over the past years, the Saudi Press Agency reported. The opening of the branch was followed by signing of memoranda of understanding between Manga Productions and Kadokawa Corporation, Tokyo University of Technology, Mizuho Bank Ltd., and Misk Foundation's Initiatives Center. Chairman of Board of Directors of Manga Productions Badr Al-Asaker said that the Saudi-Japanese relations continue to remain strong and stable since more than 65 years, and "this allows us to maintain, encourage and stimulate an environment suitable for cooperation in various fields, especially creative ones. The Tokyo branch would be an extension for joint collaboration with several Japanese creative entities to make achievements in the creative content production industry," he said adding that the opening of the Manga branch in Japan will enhance this partnership, as well as training and rehabilitation programs for young men and women interested in the field of animation. Kadokawa is one of Japan's largest comic-book companies, that houses the Kadokawa Academy, which is specialized in training and attracting experts and people interested in the storytelling industry. Several experts in the creative fields gathered in Riyadh during the current year and they decided to send a number of students to Japan for training programs, hosted by Kadokawa Academy. At the same time Manga attracted a number of experts from the academy to give training for 25 students in cooperation with the Misk Academy. This is the first batch of cartoonists in Saudi Arabia, which led to the announcement of the Misk/Kadokawa program under which 16 students have been sent to undergo advanced training programs in the same field at the Kadukawa branch in Malaysia. Through signing of MoU with Tokyo University of Technology, one of Japan's leading universities in education, Manga has managed to enroll a group of Saudi students at the university's biotechnology course. Earlier this year, Mango established collaboration with the Tokyo University of Technology, the Japan Association of Audiovisual Producers and the Japanese government, for the training of 10 students in video game design. As per the MoU signed with Mizuho Bank, there will be a training program called "Mizuho – Misk Cooperative Training. Under the program, a number of exceptional individuals looking for professionalism in the banking field will be given training to develop their capabilities through a comprehensive learning experience at Mizuho Financial Group, which is one of the world's largest financial institutions with assets of around $ 1.7 trillion. The group offers comprehensive financial and strategic services including banking, securities, credit and asset management, credit cards, private banking and venture capital through a group of companies including Mizuho Bank and Mizuhu Securities. Through its partnerships with leading global firms including the Japanese entities, Manga seeks to strengthen its vision of being a regional leader and a global leader in creative content making, by providing innovative products to build creative and ambitious generations, and this includes supporting talented people through joint training programs with partners around the world.
