In a goal aimed at attracting 10 million visitors to Japan by 2010, the Japan Tourism Agency was formally launched on October 1st.

The government last year adopted a set of policy goals focused on attracting more foreign tourists with the belief that this is an effective way to boost local economies. In a separate but related initiative, the government began their 3-year polling of foreign tourists in Kyoto last month. Part of that data will be used by the Japan Tourism Agency in order to reach its 2010 goal. 8.35 million tourists visited Japan in 2007.

The agency also has a longer-term goal of increasing the number of foreign tourists to 20 million by 2020.

The target poses various challenges such as improving the system for accepting visitors from abroad. The agency will be tasked with breaking down bureaucratic sectionalism by working to ease screening procedures including less stringent policies for visa applications. There are also issues such as overcoming the exclusionary mentality of Japanese people.

Source(s): Asahi Shimbun, Japan Times