To facilitate the early recovery of communities affected by the recent Great East Japan Earthquake, the Small and Medium Enterprise Agency (SMEA) has implemented a project to assist efforts to restore the function of shopping districts serving as the center of communities in FY 2010. In response to the requests from people affected by the earthquake, SMEA will accept new applications for the project.

1. In order to quickly get recovery efforts in the earthquake-affected areas on track, it is essential to support reconstruction of shopping districts, which play key roles in regional commerce and further serve as important elements of local communities. Recovery of shopping districts will lead to reconstruction of local communities, and therefore close cooperation with neighbors, which will help the recovery of neighboring communities. It is important to facilitate this chain of recovery.
2. Based on this concept, SMEA has implemented the “Shopping District Promotion Project (post-disaster recovery project)” to assist efforts to restore the function of earthquake-affected shopping districts serving as the center of communities in FY 2010, and adopted 96 applications.
3. In response to strong requests for the above mentioned project, even after the closing of application, SMEA will further accept applications for “FY 2011 Shopping District Promotion Project (post-disaster recovery project)”.
4. It is expected that as many affected communities as possible will take advantage of this project to accelerate their recovery efforts.

April 11, 2011

Retail and Wholesale Commerce Division, Business Support Department, Small and Medium Enterprise Agency