Japan scraps idea to woo women out of city with cash

Bureaucrats had envisioned payments of up to ¥600,000 for women who got married and settled outside of Tokyo, according to media reports. | GETTY IMAGES

Wires
August 30, 2024

A widely ridiculed Japanese government idea to woo Tokyo women into marrying men in rural areas by offering cash payouts and train tickets to matchmaking events has been scrapped, officials said Friday.

Bureaucrats had envisioned payments of up to ¥600,000 ($4,140) for women who got married and settled outside of Tokyo as part of efforts to reduce a yawning countryside gender gap, local media reported.

Hanako Jimi, minister of state for regional revitalization, said Friday she had instructed officials to "review" the plan, and insisted that reports about the size of payments were "not true."