September 16, 2020

The corona crisis has caused economic hardship on nearly 40% of peace museums in Japan. This was shown in the results of a questionnaire survey on impacts of the COVID-19 which the International Network of Museums for Peace (INMP) conducted in July.

According to the survey results, due to the pandemic, 37% of the respondents experienced financial difficulties and 9% faced a situation where they need to consider a closedown. As reasons for financial distress, they cited a sharp drop in the number of visitors resulting from a temporary shutdown in response to the spread of the coronavirus. They also pointed out a decline in charitable giving and the cancellation of projects commissioned by municipalities.

In the section which asked about support measures taken by the national and local governments during the pandemic, answers included various demands such as the provision of financial support for rent payments and losses of earnings due to the temporary closures; the introduction of a program which provides income supplements at a level calculated based on the records of the past three years; and the creation of a system that covers human and economic costs of museums’ efforts to promote virtual tour services.