Among the country's 47 prefectures, Okinawa's average income per capita has stayed at the bottom since fiscal 1989 and the prefecture's child poverty rate stands at 29.9%.
At one time the Kokusai-dori area of Naha was described as the miracle mile because of the rapid economic development that followed Okinawa s return to Japanese sovereignty. (Minako Yoshimoto)
NAHA The island prefecture of Okinawa got left behind from mainland Japan decades ago. Postwar U.S. military occupation primarily took care of that.
Now, as Okinawa marks the 49th anniversary of its return to Japanese sovereignty, the lingering effects of being under U.S. control for so long are coming into sharper focus.
That, and the impact of the COVID-19 crisis, have had a devastating toll on the local economy.
Okinawa was the independent Ryukyu Kingdom until 1879 when it was annexed by Japan.