Japan disaster: 25% of reconstruction fund spent on unrelated projects

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/oct/31/japan-tsunami-disaster-reconstruction-fund


More than 18 months after the disaster many of those forced to flee the tsunami and radiation from Fukushima are still in temporary accommodation. Photograph: Guardian

A quarter of the 11.7tn yen (£91bn) the Japanese government allocated to rebuild the region devastated by last year's earthquake and tsunami has been spent on projects unrelated to the disaster.

A government audit also found about half of the reconstruction budget had yet to be distributed owing to red tape and indecision over how the affected communities should be rebuilt.

The revelations have prompted anger among survivors, who say reconstruction is taking too long.

More than 18 months after the disaster, about 325,000 people forced to flee the tsunami and radiation from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant are still living in temporary accommodation and have no idea when, or if, they will be able to return to their home towns.