While many people welcomed Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike's recent announcement that a same-sex partnership system would be introduced across all of Tokyo in fiscal 2022, some LGBTQ activists have pointed out that much more work needs to be done to reach true equality in Japan.
To date, 12 of the 62 municipalities in Tokyo have introduced a same-sex partnership system, but Koike's announcement for the whole prefecture means that more than half of Japan's total population could be covered by such a system.
Tokyo's Shibuya Ward became the first to introduce a same-sex partnership certificate program in 2015. As of this month, a total of 147 municipalities across Japan have introduced similar systems, according to activist group Marriage For All Japan.