NAGOYA — Four hundred singles will gather in the central Japan city of Nagakute, adjacent to Nagoya, in the fall for one of the largest marriage-oriented matchmaking events in the country.

The Aichi Prefectural Government will host the gathering as a meeting place for those seeking marriage amid a shortage of privately held functions due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Since fiscal 2011, the prefecture has managed a portal site where marriage-minded people can find event information. Due to the pandemic, the number of such privately held events has declined along with the portal’s usership.

According to a survey of singles taken by the prefecture in 2018, around 80% intended to one day get married, but around 40% remained single because they had not yet met a like-minded partner. Taking this situation into account, the prefecture decided to act.

The free event will be held this October at Nagakute’s Expo 2005 Aichi Commemorative Park, intended for singles in their 20s and 30s who live, work or study in Aichi. Attendees will watch videos to learn helpful conversations and manners before splitting into small groups and setting off to find their soulmates.

Aichi budgeted 9.77 million yen (roughly $72,800) for the event. A prefectural official stated that with the declining birth rate, they “wanted to help get people thinking about marriage.” The management of the event itself will be outsourced.

The “Nihon Konkatsu Shien Kyokai,” or Japan matchmaking support association, has worked alongside public bodies to put on a number of such events. Koki Goto, a representative with the organization, said that because the event is publicly funded, “It’ll also be necessary to be creative to get people who are serious about marriage to feel welcome to join, not those who are just looking for a boyfriend or girlfriend.”

(Japanese original by Sanami Kato, Nagoya News Center)