Foreign population in 10 Japan prefectures more than doubles in decade

The population of non-Japanese residents in 10 prefectures has more than doubled over the past decade, data compiled by Kyodo News showed Saturday, underscoring that foreigners are rapidly moving into such areas in a bid to ease labor shortages.Kumamoto Prefecture in Kyushu, Japan's southwestern main island, saw the highest rise in foreign residents, as its population more than tripled in size. Hokkaido, Okinawa and two other prefectures in Kyushu made up the top five.Late last year, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. began mass production at its first factory in Kumamoto Prefecture. Ky…READ FULL ARTICLE