Tokyo: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Tuesday that his government will adopt a package of measures as early as Thursday to reconstruct central Japan areas hit hard by the powerful New Year’s Day earthquake, including a subsidy program aimed at promoting tourism in the region.

Up to 20,000 yen in subsidies will be provided to cover half of hotel charges per night per guest in Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa, and Fukui prefectures.

“Even in areas where business can be done as usual, reservations for accommodation facilities in the region have been canceled one after another, and the tourism industry there has been dealt a heavy blow,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told a press conference.

The package will also include measures to rebuild small and midsize companies in the agriculture and traditional industries and restore infrastructure at an early date.

Meanwhile, Noto Airport in the Ishikawa city of Wajima, which was hit hard by the earthquake, is expected to reopen to commercial flights on Saturday.

All Nippon Airways said it will offer one round-trip flight every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday for the time being to connect Noto Airport and Tokyo’s Haneda Airport.

The reopening of Noto Airport is expected to help speed up reconstruction work, Kishida said.

JIJI Press