Special fund for seafood exporters

Controversial spot: Workers sorting out seafood caught in offshore trawl fishing at Matsukawaura port in Soma City, Fukushima prefecture, about a week after Japan began discharging treated wastewater from the Tepco Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. — AFP

PRIME Minister Fumio Kishida announced a ¥20.7bil (RM659.54mil) emergency fund to help exporters hit by China’s ban on Japanese seafood over the release of treated radioactive wastewater from the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant.

The discharge of the wastewater into the ocean began Aug 24 and is expected to continue for decades. Japanese fishing associations and groups in neighboring countries have strongly opposed the release.