01/08/09, 03:13:05 UTC

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Govt may set up tourism agency / New entity would be tasked with improving Japan's rank among top nations

yomiuri.co.jp

The Construction and Transport Ministry is planning to establish a new affiliated agency in charge of promoting inbound tourism, tentatively called the tourism agency.

The ministry will seek approval from the Finance Ministry and other relevant government bodies for the agency's establishment, its staffing and in its fiscal 2008 budget.

The plan aims to improve the country's system for attracting foreign holidaymakers and making tourist spots more appealing in order to realize the government's goal of bringing in more foreign tourists.

The ministry will be put to the test over whether it can carry out effective new policies to meet the goal, instead of simply placing the existing tourism-related bureaucracy under one agency.

During a visit to Shanghai last Wednesday, Construction and Transport Minister Tetsuzo Fuyushiba was enthusiastic about the envisioned tourism agency. "I hope the government as a whole will take concerted action to make the nation more attractive to foreign tourists," he said.

When the Diet passed a basic law to promote tourism in December, both chambers passed resolutions urging the establishment of such an entity.

About 80 ministry officials in six divisions--including the Tourism Industries Division and the International Tourism Division--deal with tourism under the direction of the deputy director general of the Policy Bureau.

Under the plan, the divisions will be moved to the tourism agency, and the number of staff will be increased for government projects such as the Visit Japan Campaign, which aims to raise the annual number of inbound tourists to 10 million by 2010.

The new agency will work to better promote Japan as a tourist destination, coordinating with other ministries to relax criteria for tourist visas, and fostering regional tourism industries.

The plan was prompted by the ministry's concern over Japan's low ranking among tourist destinations and the fact that the nation's strategy for attracting tourists is lagging behind other advanced countries and regions.

In 2005, France had 76 million inbound tourists. The following year, Japan saw a record number of tourists, with 7.33 million--only 10 percent of that recorded by France. In 2005, Japan ranked 32nd in the world. In Asia alone, it was seventh, far below the top three--China, Malaysia and Hong Kong.

Britain, France and many other countries have government entities responsible for tourism.

By establishing the new agency, the government hopes to beef up its tourism strategy by, for example, fostering expertise on Japan among overseas travel agents.

However, any scheme calling for the establishment of a new government body is likely to come under criticism as there has been a move toward smaller government. To combat this, the ministry is considering making cuts across the board in line with the tourism agency's establishment.

"If the ministry [doesn't make full use of] the agency, it's a meaningless plan," said Chiba University Prof. Muneyuki Shindo, a public administration researcher. "The agency has to come up with practical measures, such as how to promote tourism and how best to work with local governments to improve their tourism infrastructure."

 Printable Version  | published Aug 27, 2007