thanks for watching nhk world. i'm james tengan. welcome to "newsline." here are some of the stories we're following this hour. operators of some nuclear plants in japan get ready to face new safety checks as they prepare to apply for permission to restart their reactors. two reactors in south korea are being pulled offline after the nuclear regulator there determines some parts had bogus safety certificates.

and japanese businesses play catch-up in africa as mining and other industries on the continent open up a wealth of opportunities. operators of four nuclear plants in japan are taking a step toward a goal that's been distant for a couple of years. they say they're preparing to apply for permission in july to restart reactors. only one plant is online following the accident in fukushima. utility companies must meet new rules in order to fire up others. nhk world explains. >> reporter: the four plants in question are dotted across japan from the south to the northern island of hokkaido. operators must prove reactors at the facilities adhere to new safety measures that come into effect in july. nuclear regulators develop the guidelines in response to the 2011 accident at fukushima daiichi.

>> japan has 17 commercial nuclear plants. at one point all of them were off line because of the fukushima crisis. government leaders allowed operator of the obi plant to restart two reactors last summer. they were concerned at the power shortages. nearly a year later the safety requirements facing the plant operators are even tougher. >> translator: we hope to restart reactors as soon as their safety is confirmed. >> reporter: the new guidelines will force operators to prepare for severe accidents, including power outages and meltdowns. they must build a separate control room off-site to serve as a back-up facility. and they must install filters on vents used to release pressurized air in the reactors. that will limit the escape of radioactive substances during

emergencies. operators will also be required to introduce tougher measures against tsunami. they will have to study the potential height of a tsunami and build seawalls to withstand the largest of quakes. officials at the nuclear regulatory agency say they will set up three 20-member teams to screen applications. but some experts are concerned the system will not be effective. >> translator: the new regulations cover severe accidents which previous guidelines did not. the examiners have little knowledge of this area so they will be learning and making difficult decisions as they go. that raises doubts about their expertise. >> reporter: regulators say it will take six months to a year to complete the reviews. but the issue is not how long the work will take but, rather,

how effectively it will be done. yoichiro tateiwa, nhk world. government officials are grappling with another problem for the nuclear energy industry. they're debating how to dispose of high-level wastes produced by power plants. the government enacted a law in 27000 to bury the waste hundreds of meters underground but the plan stalled when people living near candidate burial sites opposed it. top scientists recommended scrapping the policy. a panel of government experts has reopened discussion on the matters. some want to press on with the plan, but only after informing the public about the options and asking local governments to cooperate. others say it's time to think of new options. officials will also discuss whether japan should continue reprocessing spent nuclear waste, or dispose of it directly. south korean nuclear regulators have shut down two

reactors after determining some parts had fake safety certificates. they suspended two other reactors last year because of the same issue. >> translator: after the investigation, we confirmed that there were fake documents related to the nuclear power plant. >> officials with the nuclear safety and security commission said cables in four reactors were not tested properly. the commission is calling for all cables to be replaced. south koreans were outraged last year by revelations that parts with fake documents were being used in reactors. they called for regulators to do a better job at managing risks. the latest shutdown order means 10 of 23 reactors are off-line, raising fears of power shortages during the peak summer months.

hundreds of people took part in a disaster drill. hundreds of people in one of the world's biggest and busiest cities prepared for something they know is inevitable. tokyo residents took part in a disaster drill. the 2011 earthquake froze the city's transportation network, stranding more than 3 million people. city officials want to be better prepared for the next emergency. chie yamagishi reports. >> reporter: about 1,000 people took part in the drill at the shibuya station. it assumed a magnitude 7.3 quake struck north of tokyo bay, knocking out transportation systems. shibuya station is a major commuter hub. nine rail lines pass through the station above and below ground. this area was opened in march. it's located five stories below ground. it has several exits that leads

to ground level. subway riders unfamiliar with the station would have difficulty finding their way out. almost 2.5 million people pass through this station every day. this drill is aimed at finding out if people can move through designated evacuation points without incident. one of the goals of the drill was to see whether railway staff could guide passengers to temporary shelter. two years ago people rushed to train stations hoping to get home. they found that nothing was running. many wound up walking home. others spent the night inside the stations or nearby or at their offices. since then authorities have been trying to come up with solutions. they need to identify places

where people can go when they get stranded. after the disaster, managers of 28 facilities near shibuya station said they would offer accommodation in the event of another major quake. one is this commercial complex. it's connected to the station. the building's managers have stored enough food and drinking water for as many as 13,000 people. the building was part of the drill. participants climbed the stairs from the third basement level to the ninth floor. >> translator: climbing the stairs would be really hard in an emergency. >> translator: it will be difficult to get the right information when everything is so confused. >> translator: i think we need to have more shelters. there will be so many people rushing into the station after a big earthquake strikes.

so we need to train all of our staff to try and help guide them. >> reporter: experts say a major quake could leave 5 million people stranded in tokyo. community leaders and businesspeople are teaming up to get ready. when the time comes, they want to be able to tell people where to take shelter and help reduce the chaos. chie yamagishi, nhk world, tokyo. thousands of residents are still waiting to go home. vast tracts of land are still waiting to be restored, and more than half of fishing ports on the pacific coast must be rebuilt. people in northeastern japan still face challenges following the 2011 disaster, but step by step they are moving forward. see their stories every wednesday on "the road ahead" on

"newsline." north korean authorities have invited south korean business managers to take part in talks on reopening a jointly run industrial complex. they are effectively cutting out government officials in seoul who have been pushing for working-level discussions. the kaesong industrial zone is located close to the border. operations have been halted for nearly two months. authorities in pyongyang decided in april to pull out 53,000 workers. representatives of the north korean committee that handles cross-border affairs say they approve visits by south korean business managers to the complex. they say issues concerning the operation of kaesong, including what to do with products left behind at the complex will be discussed if the managers return. south korean officials say their counterparts in the north continue to refuse repeated proposals for working-level talks.

analysts say the north koreans are using this latest initiative to try to rattle their neighbor. pakistan's likely new prime minister nawaz sharif has been reminding people there that he's responsible for one of the country's proudest moments. it's first-ever nuclear test. cholaphansa narula in bangkok is following the story. may 28th marks 15 years since pakistan conducted its first nuclear weapons test. then-prime minister nawaz sharif what was seen as a national success. and 15 years on he's set to return to office. nazar ul islam reports from

islamabad. >> reporter: lahore is currently hosting a conference to mark the anniversary. prime minister in waiting sharif used the occasion to highlight his role in pakistan becoming the first islamic nation to develop its own nuclear weapons program. >> translator: pakistan's achievement made us the seventh nation to become a nuclear power in its own right. >> reporter: pakistani scientists began developing the country's nuclear program in the 1970s. it culminated in the first successful test in may 1998. india had previously beaten its neighbor to become a nuclear power almost a quarter century earlier, provoking an intense rivalry between the two nations. sharif emphasized pakistan's nuclear development repeatedly during the recent general election campaign, emphasizing that it had been achieved despite strong pressure from the united states to abandon the program.

voters reacted positively to his message, which came against a background of rising anti-u.s. sentiment. drone attacks against insurgents in northwest pakistan and civilian casualties fueled their anger. after winning power sharif now faces stiff challenges in getting pakistan back on track. they include the security situation, as well as issues such as severe energy shortages and a stagnating economy. speaking on tuesday, he addressed the energy situation, claiming it would take time and cost money to build up pakistan's infrastructure and tap natural resources. >> translator: i'm going to

create an economic explosion after our nuclear explosion we now need the economic equivalent. we will, god willing, achieve that goal in the next five years. >> reporter: sharif's task is clear, to impress upon the citizens of pakistan that he was behind the successful nuclear test 15 years ago, and to urge people desperate for a quick fix to be patient. nazar ul islam, nhk world, islamabad. also in pakistan, gunmen killed a world health organization anti-polio worker, and seriously wounded another on tuesday. it's the latest strike against the u.n.-backed medical aid drive. islamist insurgents claim the vaccination program is cover for an espionage operation. two gunmen on a motorcycle attacked the aid team on the outskirts of peshawar, as it was administering polio drops. the area is near a tribal region known to have links to the pakistani taliban.

no one has claimed responsibility for the killing. last year, nine health workers were killed by gunmen in separate shootings across pakistan. the pakistani taliban has long apposed the health drive. they also claim it's a secret western plot to sterilize muslims. religious leaders have spoken out to debunk such misconceptions. the w.h.o. said on tuesday that it is suspending vaccination operations in pakistan. u.n. data show that pakistan is one of just three countries in the world where polio is still endemic. and violence is continuing to cause mayhem in thailand's volatile southern region. more than a dozen people have been killed in bomb and gun attacks in the past five days alone. the thai government and muslim insurgents are set for a third round of peace talks next month. while the continuing violence is creating doubt about how effective negotiations can be in ending almost a decade of

conflict. it is reported that two army personnel were shot dead on tuesday morning in an ambush in the predominantly muslim province of patani. on monday a blast at a school killed two security gart in the same province, and a roadside bomb killed one border patrol officer the same day. separatists are seeking autonomy in the three southernmost provinces of thailand. nine years of violence in the buddhist majority country have killed more than 5,000 people. the thai government held its first official peace negotiations in march with a representative of insurgent group brn. one of the main agendas of the peace process will be how to contain radical groups that are opposed to the talks. >> translator: it seems they're trying to block the negotiations. the whole point of holding peace talks with the brn is to reduce the amount of violence, while we

try to find out which insurgent groups are still active in the south. >> the next round of negotiations is scheduled for june 13th in malaysian capital of kuala lumpur. that wraps up our bulletin. i'm cholaphansa narula in bangkok. here on "newsline," the latest market figures.

japanese government and business leaders will spend the weekend building more links to a part of the world that's bursting with potential. the tokyo international conference on african development or ticad starts on saturday. japan has fallen behind other nation that have better foothold on the continent. nhk world went to zambia to see how one japanese firm is gaining ground in the mining industry. >> reporter: this is the copper ore, content of the copper here. the changing color is green. >> reporter: takuji has spent much of his career working overseas. he's now the head of hitachi construction machineries, local subsidiary in zambia. hi job is to increase sales in the african market. the market is very competitive,

do you think? >> yes, yes. that is started not now but long time ago, yes, still very tough business. >> reporter: zambia is the world's seventh largest copper producer. the price of this commodity has risen since 2004, boosting the country's economy. it now sees around 6% to 7% growth every year. companies from europe, canada, and emerging economies have helped develop many new copper mines in the last decade. hitachi is just one of the firms from japan playing catch-up. it first made inroads in zambia ten years ago. it's been competing against u.s. company whose heavy machinery has been favored at copper mines.

hitachi's share of dumptruck sales in africa sits at around 10%. dump trucks are in heavy use in mining sites. look at the size of the tire. it's about four meters in height. and they can carry about 170 tons of excavated materials. hitachi managers are trying to show their vehicles are more than just big powerful machines. they say they are fuel-efficient, too. one of their latest trucks uses technology found in japanese bullet trains. the vehicle can link up to power lines to run the engine. electricity in zambia is inexpensive, so this innovation could allow mining companies to save up to 40% of their fuel cost. but with mines open 24 hours a day, operators also need machinery they can count on.

a mine could lose some $30,000 if work stops for even an hour. >> clearly i could see the criteria is that we have a fleet that is firstly cost-effective. secondly, it's going to be an equipment or a fleet that's going to be durable and reliable. >> reporter: hitachi is also trying to fill that need. standpoint agawa stations locally hired engineers at mine sites ready to provide service day and night. and in april last year, the company opened a vehicle parts repair factory in the capital lusaka. workers overhaul worn out and damaged vehicle parts and ship them back to the mines. it's faster than sourcing parts from a factory in south africa. >> this african market will be a

very big market to us in the future. and i hope we can make profit a lot and supporting -- especially mining companies in several african countries. >> reporter: company managers need to do more than just sell a solid product. they have to offer service quality, too. the demand for africa's natural resources is opening up new markets. the competition among foreign firms is expected to intensify. kaori nagao, nhk world, zambia. >> africa, a continent of promise and plunder. more than a billion people form a mosaic. many live in a land rich in minute malls. "newsline" is looking at the

challenges and opportunities in this continent in a lead-up to an international conference in tokyo. don't miss or coverage all this week, 8:00 p.m. japan time. for us here in tokyo, wet weather is in the forecast for tomorrow. for more, here's robert speaka. >> rain showers will be on tap across much of japan as we go wednesday into thursday, all due to this low pressure area that's continuing to push in overhead, and also much across we've already seen rain totals. the official start of the rainy season actually here on tuesday. well, now you're going to be expecting about 100 to 200 millimeters of rainfall as that does continue to push off. really quite suiting with that rainy, and then a couple rumbles of thunder. these storms could well become rather severe.

let's extend back towards the west, because into southeastern china, much of eastern china as well, we're also seeing that rainy season boundary. this is bringing in some, well, rather high totals, along the yangtze river basisen local areas could see up to 250 millimeters in the forecast. flooding is going to be a high risk here. we've seen numerous reports of flooding in the last several days. it still will be pushing on here, and also a possibility of some mudslides, as that continues overhead. let's look far back to the west. we're talking about the tropics, and a different type of monsoonal weather. this will possibly drift off to the west. don't expect it to develop further into a named system, but it is bringing heavy rainfall, extending down there are myanmar, but it's kicking off the rainy season front that we've been talking about. that is down here into the bay

of bengal right now, may 27th, by early june, that southwest monsoon will start to kick in, and that is really going to be bringing in some heavy rainfall, but also thankfully cooling off the temperatures for you there across much of india. it has been absolutely hot out here, in chennai, some of the highest temperatures in about five years out here. even towards new delhi, 44 here for your high near wednesday. as the rains push out june into july, at least it will be a welcome sight for you. but let's talk about the u.s. severe weather has been in the forecast. it's still going to be in the forecast. on on monday there were 16 reports of tornadoes. well, now the same low is extending off toward the east into the ohio river vailie, illinois, into iowa. expecting over 200 millimeters in your forecast.

that's going to be triggering the risks of flash flooding, but also the severe weather that's in the forecast, we're talking about large hail, up to baseball size, some winds over 100 kilometers per hour, everywhere you see here in the red. still the risk of tornadoes, as this continues to develop, bringing those widespread rain showers with it as well. as we look forward to the south, though, things are quite dry and warm. take a look at houston for your high here. 32, atlanta into 30, miami some afternoon showers popping up. really most of the northeast for that matter, you'll be seeing some rain showers or temperatures into the high teens, to low 20s. that's a look at your world weather. here's the extended forecast.

♪ thanks for joining us here on "newsline." stay with us where there's more to come here on nhk world.

working adults line up for lunch, even if it's cold. see here and here? hey, welcome to "lunch on!" by the way, do you ever get in line for lunch? popular restaurants where people wait in line are often featured on tv, but do people really line up for lunch? >> translator: i would rather not eat than wait in line. >> i would not get in line. >> translator: it's a waste of time. >> translator: i find some place else to eat. >> a survey shows when asked, if you see a long line at a restaurant you choose to go to, would you still eat there? just under 30% of on