Arab News Japan

TOKYO: Same-day admission tickets will be introduced for the 2025 World Expo in Osaka, Japanese Prime Minister ISHIBA Shigeru announced Tuesday, in a bid to boost sluggish ticket sales ahead of the event’s April 13 opening.

The decision comes in response to a request from Osaka Governor YOSHIMURA Hirofumi, who pushed for a more flexible ticketing system to attract more visitors.

The Expo, set to run for six months on the artificial island of Yumeshima, has struggled with sales despite initial strong demand when discounted tickets were available.

A complex advance reservation system, requiring online time-slot bookings and user registration, has been blamed for deterring individual buyers.

To address complaints, organizers introduced paper tickets at convenience stores last year, but sales remained slow.

The introduction of same-day tickets underscores Ishiba’s efforts to strengthen ties with Yoshimura’s Japan Innovation Party as his minority government seeks opposition support to pass the fiscal 2025 budget.

While Yoshimura welcomed the move, some organizers were skeptical. “I think this was all Yoshimura putting on a performance,” one official said, according to JIJI Press.

Concerns over low public interest persist. A Mitsubishi Research Institute survey in October showed only 24 percent of respondents expressed interest in visiting the Expo.