On May 11, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga announced that the central government is considering assisting Kyushu’s tourism industry in the wake of the Kumamoto earthquakes. Similar to the Furusato Ryokoken (“hometown travel coupon”) initiative that was part of the fiscal 2014 supplementary budget, the central government would partially subsidize travel coupons issued by local governments in Kyushu, which could be used to receive significant discounts on accommodations. In response to requests for support from the seven prefectures of Kyushu and regional economic federations, Secretary Suga said the government would “use travel coupons and other measures to provide support in the most effective manner.” More than 700,000 hotel reservations have been cancelled throughout Kyushu since the quakes. Local authorities also also asked the central government for help in getting public transportation back online as quickly as possible. Source: Asahi Shimbun, 5/12
