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On December 19, 2019, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held the 24th meeting of the Reconstruction Promotion Council at the Prime Minister’s Office.

At the meeting, a discussion was held on the draft Basic Policy on Reconstruction from the Great East Japan Earthquake after the end of the reconstruction and revitalization period.

Based on the discussion, the Prime Minister said,

“Reconstruction from the Great East Japan Earthquake remains the top priority to the Abe administration. While just one year is left until the end of the reconstruction and revitalization period, there are continuing needs of supports, such as psychological care, in the earthquake and tsunami affected areas. In the nuclear-disaster affected areas, a medium to long term response is required.

In light of such situations, we have provided an outline of the future directions on matters, such as those of various measures in the respective areas of financial resources and institutional arrangements, by formulating a new basic policy on reconstruction, to fully prepare reconstruction efforts after the end of the reconstruction and revitalization period. We intend to submit necessary bills to next year’s ordinary Diet session, following this basic policy.

There will be no reconstruction of Tohoku without the reconstruction of Fukushima, and there will be no revitalization of Japan without the reconstruction of Tohoku. We will continue to work towards reconstruction and follow through with our hands-on approach under political responsibility and leadership. This will not change even after the reconstruction and revitalization period ends.

I ask the Cabinet members to once again share this basic policy, under the mindset of working like a Minister for Reconstruction, and exert all-out efforts to achieve full-scale reconstruction at the earliest date possible.”