Emperor Naruhito offered prayers for people’s happiness and world peace as him and his family waved to crowds of New Year’s well-wishers from the balcony at the Imperial Palace in the celebration halted for the past two years

Japan ranked 118th out of 148 countries in the World Economic Forum’s 2025 Global Gender Gap Report, the same position as last year - the lowest among G7; political empowerment is the weakest area, while education and health register near gender parity

Japan came 14th among 36 developed countries in new child well-being survey, up from 20th in the previous survey released in 2020; the UNICEF Innocenti report comprehensively evaluates children's mental well-being, physical health and skills

Around 119.000 people visited the Osaka Expo on its opening day Sunday 14 April, the Japan Association for the 2025 World Expo said that over 140.000 people had made reservations 20.000 appear to have changed their dates to avoid bad weather