Businesses, universities and a local bureau of the industry ministry have jointly set up a council to increase the number of foreigners studying in west Japan as well as job openings for those who graduate.
The management council for employment of global manpower aims to address foreign graduates seeking jobs in Tokyo and encourage them to find work in the Kansai region.
The council, set up Thursday by the Kansai Economic Federation, includes eight schools, including Kyoto University, Osaka University and Kobe University, as well as the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's local branch and the Kyoto Association of Cooperative Executives.
The council said it aims to increase job offers available to foreign students by 30 percent in fiscal 2014 compared with three years ago.
They are planning to give seminars and provide internships to increase the chance that foreign students will contact Kansai businesses. They will actively use facebook and other social-networking tools to promote such interaction.