Japan's new foreign worker program sets off scramble for talent

TOKYO -- As Japan moves to a new foreign worker training program that provides more flexibility in changing jobs, regions outside metropolitan areas are sweetening their offers and bolstering support in a bid to attract talent.

Kochi prefecture, on the island of Shikoku, this fiscal year began offering a 300,000 yen ($1,900) retention incentive for foreign nationals who take classes on the prefecture and its dialect before coming to Japan, then work there for three years. Kochi is also paying subsidies of up to 1.2 million yen to local educational institutions.