The "Advanced IT Prefecture".

(From Journal of Japanese Trade & Industry (JJTI))

Byline: Goto Masaaki

Okayama Prefecture is making an effort to develop its IT infrastructure ahead of other prefectures in Japan, based on the concept that an information network foundation is just as necessary to society as water and electricity services. The backbone of this effort is the Okayama Information Highway, a high-speed, high-capacity fiber optic network installed throughout the prefecture. With an investment that has reached a total of \2.5 billion, Okayama became the first regional government in the world to install the next-generation Internet protocol standard, IPv6, for its core network. By actively promoting the IT industry and human resources development, Okayama, under Prefectural Governor Ishii Masahiro, has been implementing initiatives to establish itself as the "Advanced IT Prefecture."

Okayama is situated in the western part of the main island of Honshu. One of the characteristics of the prefecture is the size of its manufacturing industry. Located in the south along the Seto Inland Sea, the Mizushima industrial belt is one of the leading industrial centers of western Japan. The ratio of the worker population employed in secondary industries (mining, manufacturing and construction) is about 32%, which is three points higher than the national average.

The Prefecture began drawing up plans for its information highway in 1996. The impetus for this effort was the concern that the living standards for people in Okayama might fall behind the rest of the country, if it was slow to develop its information network infrastructure amid the rapid IT revolution. Since it determined that unprofitable areas would be neglected if the infrastructure development was left to private companies, the Prefecture decided to install the fiber optic network itself.

Construction of the core network began in 1998, and was completed in March 2001. With this core network, the entire prefecture had fiber optic connections by March 2003. In March 2004, a next-generation Internet protocol with better security, IPv6, which can cope with a huge increase in the number of addresses was installed, and a high-speed high-capacity service (up to 10 Gbps) was realized.

As a result of connecting local schools, community centers and libraries in all municipalities to the fiber optic network, there are now over 2,000 public institutions on the Okayama Information Highway. Access to this network is offered free of charge for everyone.