Tomiko Itooka, recognized by Britain’s Guinness World Records as the world’s oldest person in September last year, has died in western Japan, health ministry and other officials said Saturday 4th January. She was 116. Itooka died at 9:03PM of old age on Dec. 29 at a care home for the elderly in Ashiya, Hyogo Prefecture.
As JR East promoted the employment of people with disabilities, they realized that many workplaces had no contact with the outside world. So, starting in the summer of 2023, JR East decided to have people with disabilities serve customers in a food truck. In December 2024, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare’s Tokyo Labor Bureau released the results of a survey on the employment status of people with disabilities. The number of people with disabilities employed by private companies reached a record high of 251,901 (a 5.3% increase from the previous year). Meanwhile, 17,369 companies in Tokyo have not met the legal employment rate, and of these, 9,785 companies do not employ any people with disabilities.
2025 is the year of Tokyo Deaflympics, which will be held from November 15 to 26, 2025 in Tokyo with other venues in Shizuoka and Fukushima. Despite being older than the Paralympics – the first Deaflympics was held in Paris, France in 1924 – it doesn’t receive as much attention as the Paralympics, although like the Paralympics it is recognized by the IOC. This event will commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Deaflympics, the Winter events being held in 2024 in Erzurum, Turkey.
A growing number of local governments in Japan are using a smartphone app to help visually impaired residents access critical information in the event of a natural disaster.
The year is almost over, it is time to greet the next one. The event Barrier Free Japan is looking forward to the most that will take place next year is the Tokyo 2025 Deaflympics, which will be held from November 15 to 26, 2025 in Tokyo with other venues in Shizuoka and Fukushima. Despite being older than the Paralympics – the first Deaflympics was held in Paris, France in 2024 – it doesn’t receive as much attention as the Paralympics, although like the Paralympics it is recognized by the IOC. This event will commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Deaflympics, the Winter events being held in 2024 in Erzurum, Turkey.
An outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza has been confirmed at a poultry farm in the town of Yachiyo, Ibaraki Prefecture, eastern Japan, the prefectural government said Sunday.
The health ministry announced plans Thursday to revise regulations to allow over-the-counter (OTC) drugs to be picked up at convenience stores without the presence of pharmacists or registered salespersons. Customers will be required to receive explanations about the medication online from a pharmacist or registered salesperson before making a purchase.
Japanese Princess Kako, the second daughter of Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko, turned 30 on Sunday. As an adult member of the Imperial Family, Princess Kako has performed various official duties at home and abroad this year, while working twice a week since April at the Japanese Federation of the Deaf, which she joined as a part-time employee in 2021.
Influenza is on the rise across Japan, with weekly case counts increasing in all 47 prefectures. The National Institute of Infectious Diseases and other organizations say about 5,000 hospitals and clinics across the country reported seeing 211,049 flu patients in the seven-day period up to December 22.
In fiscal year 2023, the number of cases in which elderly individuals were abused by staff at care facilities increased by 31.2% compared to the previous year, reaching 1,123 cases, according to a survey by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare released on the 27th. This marks the third consecutive year of record-high figures and the first time the number has exceeded 1,000 since the survey began in fiscal year 2007.
Barrier Free Japan