Tokyo: Japan will pay 1 million yen (about 6,33,000 rupees) to each child of the Japanese family to leave the capital Tokyo due to population decline in the country’s slums, Time magazine reported.
Financial Assistance to leave Tokyo
According to the new proposal, if a family agrees to leave the Tokyo area, 1 million yen per child in the family will be given in aid. If a family has 2 children, it will get 3 million yen.
According to the plan, which was launched in 2019, the government expects that by 2027, about 10,000 people will leave Tokyo and move to the rural area. Last year, the government provided financial assistance to 1,184 families in this scheme, while in 2020, it provided financial assistance to 290 families and in 2019, it provided financial assistance to 71 families.
Families who have lived in the central Tokyo metropolitan area for 5 years can apply for the above financial assistance, the report states. For this purpose, the central government and the local municipality are jointly providing the money. In addition, additional support will be provided to families in the transit area if they are interested in starting a business.
However, 1 million yen is not enough to move to a rural town with all facilities. The families who are willing to go are expected to receive financial assistance for at least 5 years. Also, help a family member to get a job or start a new business establishment.
As more and more young people migrate to urban areas for the convenience of the city, Japan’s rural areas have become increasingly depopulated in recent years. Therefore, the government officials hope that the plan will help to reduce the space crisis and the difficulties that the government is facing in providing public services in the Greater Tokyo area, The Guardian reported.