Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) in partnership with the Uganda Embassy in Tokyo, Japan, has concluded a four-day expo at the Aichi Tourism Expo held in Nagoya, Japan.
The expo organized by the Japan Association of Travel and Tourism (JATA) and Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) in 2024 attracted over 182,934 visitors and over 1,384 exhibitors from over 80 countries.
The 2025 edition was held at the Aichi International Exhibition Centre in Central Japan with over 115,000 consumers.
Speaking at the Uganda stand, Nurh Byarufu, Minister Counselor from the Uganda Embassy in Tokyo stated that “Japan is an emerging tourism market for Uganda with growing demand for new and sustainable destinations. With interest in culture, wildlife and true Ugandan hospitality, Uganda is primed to tap into this source market as the country aims to achieve 25-fold growth by 2040.”
Excitement was generated with freshly brewed Ugandan coffee, the shoebill, and mountain gorillas.
Juliana Kagwa, CEO Uganda Tourism Board, was excited about the initiative of having destination Uganda’s market presence in Japan. She noted that tourists need to be constantly exposed to Uganda’s tourism offerings. “We are grateful to our embassy for championing this showcase at the 2025 edition of the Aichi Expo, as this synergy will greatly enable an increase of visitor numbers to Uganda,” she said.
Omulangira Joseph Mulondo from Buganda Kingdom re-echoed the need to showcase Uganda’s rich culture through immersive tourism experiences including virtual reality and augmented reality along the customer journey, as the Japan tourism market is well advanced in technology.
On behalf of tour operators, Sam Mugisha of Bic Tours based in Uganda noted, “A combination of the big five safari and the boat cruise experience in Queen Elizabeth and Murchison Falls National Parks under picturesque sunsets are an unrivalled experience in the whole world. We must promote this experience of a lifetime to potential tourists from Japan.”
In her remarks, H.E. Tophace Kaahwa, Uganda’s Ambassador to Japan, reiterated the call to attract more middle-class Japanese tourists with more disposable income to the Pearl of Africa. “Last year, according to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), Uganda received close to 1,000 tourists from Japan. Aligned to the Economic and Commercial Diplomacy Strategy that was launched at the Ambassadors’ Retreat in Gulu, our mission in Japan has created partnerships with our colleagues from the Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) and Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) to host tour operators, media agents, and influencers from Japan at the end of the year. Our anticipation is to grow these arrivals to 10,000 tourists by June 2027,” she said.
The Uganda delegation at the Aichi Tourism Expo included officials from Uganda’s embassy in Tokyo, Japan, Uganda Tourism Board, representatives from the Buganda Kingdom, Ape Treks, Bic Tours, Africa Runners Company and Kankou Tours.
