The Japanese government was among the first to distribute nonfungible tokens as a type of supplemental award to acknowledge the efforts of local governments that have excelled at using digital technology to solve local problems. During the Summer Digi Denkoshien 2022 ceremony, the Cabinet Secretariat, a government entity led by the nation's Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno, presented the prizes. The ceremony was also attended by Japan's Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida. Seven mayors were honoured for their communities' views towards the digital economy. Among them was the mayor of Sakata, Yamagata Prefecture, whose administration urged that local deliveries be made using electric cars.

The Ethereum-based proof-of-attendance NFTs were distributed using Hazama Base, the same infrastructure that was previously used to distribute NFTs at a Liberal Democratic Party Youth Bureau event. Because the assets are non-transferable, they cannot be sold on the secondary market. Japan is regarded for being a pro-technology and inventive country, and the government has legalized cryptocurrency as a trade instrument. On several occasions, the country's prime minister has shown an interest in the usage of NFTs.

Sources:

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/non-fungible-token-nft-market-research-report-by-technavio-predicts-usd-147-24-bn-growth-301588382.html

https://coinshots.com/news/japanese-govt-issues-nfts-to-reward-local-authorities-work

https://www.business2community.com/nft-news/japanese-govt-adopts-nfts-to-reward-its-local-authorities-02547680

https://cointelegraph.com/news/japanese-gov-t-issues-nfts-to-reward-local-authorities-work

https://www.investing.com/news/cryptocurrency-news/japanese-govt-issues-nfts-to-reward-local-authorities-work-2889688