Mayors of four Japanese cities partner with African nations as designated "hometowns" on August 21, Nishi Ward, Yokohama.
Reports that the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has designated four Japanese municipalities as "hometowns" for African countries are drawing attention on The Sankei Shimbun's website.
The initiative aims to encourage exchanges and create "talent circulation" between Japan and Africa. However, some overseas media reported that Japan will issue special work visas under the program. That claim has stirred concern domestically.
Both JICA and the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs have categorically denied those reports.
Misleading News Reports
The hometown designations were announced on August 21 at a meeting held around the time of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) in Yokohama.
Under the new program, Nagai City in Yamagata Prefecture was paired with Tanzania. Kisarazu City in Chiba and Nigeria were paired, as was Sanjo City in Niigata with Ghana. Imabari City in Ehime was likewise linked with Mozambique.
Following the announcement, Nigerian newspaper The Punch, the BBC, and The Guardian cited Nigerian authorities, inaccurately stating that Japan would issue special work visas for employment in Kisarazu.
Those new reports sparked debate on social media, where some users questioned, "Is this about accepting more immigrants?"
Officials Deny Visa Claims
On August 25, Kisarazu City posted a statement from Mayor Yoshikuni Watanabe on its website, denying the social media frenzy over the city accepting immigrants. Nonetheless, the city hall was flooded with inquiries.
In response, JICA issued a statement on August 25, clarifying that local media reports claiming the program promotes immigration or involves special visas were false. The agency said it had requested the media to promptly correct their coverage.
On the same day, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told The Sankei Shimbun in an interview, "We have not even considered a special work visa. This is purely an exchange promotion initiative, and it's inconceivable that we would devote four of our cities to African countries."
Google Maps Pranks
In addition to this blunder, a series of online pranks has altered the names of city halls in the designated hometown cities to those of the corresponding African countries on Google Maps.
It is believed that the map's correction feature was misused for slander and defamation.
As of 4:30 PM on August 25, clicking on Sanjo City Hall in Niigata Prefecture on Google Maps showed "Ghana City Hall." Meanwhile, Imabari City Hall in Ehime Prefecture appeared as "Imabari City Hall (Mozambique)." Kisarazu City Hall in Chiba Prefecture was temporarily listed as "Kisarazu City Hall Asahi Building (Nigeria)" and "Nigeria City Hall Ekimae Building."
These entries have since been corrected.
Google Maps allows users to submit suggestions for correcting a location's name or address. Although Google is supposed to verify these suggestions, in practice, the system prioritizes speed over accuracy. This can lead to incorrect information being displayed without proper review.
Hoaxes Fuel Unease
These are not the only cases of abuse. There have been multiple incidents in Japan and abroad where users have altered place names or posted defamatory comments on review sites to target businesses that sparked controversy on social media.
In one instance, the Atomic Bomb Dome in Hiroshima was changed to "nuclear testing site."
The cities targeted by these map edits had been designated as hometowns during the TICAD conference being held in Yokohama.
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Author: The Sankei Shimbun
