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The Japanese government has “appointed” Hello Kitty as its tourism ambassador to China and Hong Kong on Monday. Japan previously named 11 individuals (including the pop music duo Puffy AmiYumi) as tourism ambassadors, but Sanrio’s feline mascot is the first fictional character. Hello Kitty will be part of the “Visit Japan” campaign that has helped increase foreign tourism by 60% since it started in 2003. 8.35 million foreign tourists visited Japan last year, but the campaign organizers are hoping to raise that number to 10 million. Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs already appointed the manga robot cat Doraemon as its “anime cultural ambassador.”

More Info: ANN