Fancy a move to the countryside? Japan seeks to curb rural exodus

Reviving Japan’s countryside is a topic that’s close to the heart of Shigeru Ishiba, the country’s outgoing prime minister. Ishiba hails from a remote part of Japan and owes his political career to support from rural voters. This year, he doubled subsidies for local governments and appointed 180 “revitalisation officers”. But the exodus from rural regions continues. Today, more than half of Japan’s land is inhabited by less than 10 percent of the population. Yet generous incentives to encourage people living in cities to return to the countryside are having some success. FRANCE 24’s Justin McCurry, Alexis Bregere, Mélodie Sforza, Ayana Nishikawa and Constantin Simon report.