On Jun. 11, 2013, the Cabinet approved the “State of Tourism in FY 2012” and the “Tourism Policy in FY 2013” (“White Paper on Tourism in Japan, 2013.”)
This year, the “White Paper” marks the 50th issue counted since its first publication in 1964, and this year is also the 10th year since the launch of “Visit Japan” campaign, therefore it specially features the “Promotion of International Tourism.” It reviews domestic and international trends and major events on Japan’s effort to attract foreign visitors over the 50 years. For the future development, it clearly states the policy to “construct a stable structure to attract foreign visitors” without heavily depending on East Asian visitors, and also not strongly affected by external factors.
In the state of tourism in FY 2012 section, pages are devoted to description on the reconstruction form the Great East Japan Earthquake as it did in the previous year, and descriptions on the situations of various areas through Hokkaido to Okinawa. Also in the columns, individuals active in the field of tourism locally and internationally are introduced as to pick up specific approach and viewpoint from the field, making the White Paper’s content more interesting to the readers.
“White Paper on Tourism” summarizes the state of tourism as well as the tourism-related measures taken by the government and it is reported to the Diet each year.
