hello there and welcome to "newsline." its renz wednesday november 11. i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. the mrj is making its test flight in central japan. nhk world is there to see it. >>. >> reporter: gathered here to see the result of a decade of work. the mrj is designed to fly short distances and carry between 17 and 19 passengers.

now the mrjs are approaching the run way. production stopped in 1973. today's maiden flight is a critical step in the process. development has not -- the flight was postponed five times. now, it's getting ready to take off. mrj is in the air. the industry design and building the plane domestically --

decided to produce a small passenger plane in 2008. the japanese government subsidized its development. >> translator: we want this project to grow into a major industry. >> reporter: about 2,000 small passenger jets are now in service mainly in the u.s. and europe. most produced by bombardier, a canadian company. but competition is heading up. russian and chinese manufacturers to growing demand in asia. mitsubishi aircraft is -- they say the fuselage and it consumes

less fuel than its competitors. the cabin is designed with passenger comfort in mind. special materials create a thinner back rest providing extra leg room. the company has already received orders for 400 jets. this flight will last about an hour. will check the plane's basic functions. mrj must undergo more than 2,000 hours test flight and theind with certification before it can go on the market. nhk world. >> looking forward to riding in the mrj in a couple of years. aung san suu kyi's national league for democracy believes it

is heading for a sweeping election victory in myanmar. the official count is still ongoing, but the party says it's confident of winning enough seats to take power. it was the country's first free nationwide general election in 25 years. the senior member of the nld told reporters on tuesday that they have secured 81% of the votes in the whole country. the nld has been making its own counts at polling stations nationwide and estimates it won 294 of the 360 seats it assessed so far. nhk cannot independently verify the accuracy of the nld's count. one-fourth of the seats in parliament are allotted to the military. that means in order to take power, the nld needs to capture more than two-thirds of the contested seats or at least 333 of them. the party's count puts it close to that threshold. election commission officials say 121 seats have been decided so far. the nld won 107 of them. the ruling union solidarity and development party backed by the military won just seven.

ethnic minority and independent parties have a total of seven. about 10,000 observers have been the final result may be a couple of weeks aaway. lawmakers will vote to elect a president and the new government will be launched as early as march. diplomatic moves among asian nations over territorial disputes in the south china sea are gearing up. china asked philippines not to raise the disputes. the philippines will host the summit. chinese foreign minister met on tuesday with philippine foreign secretary. ophyllous said the philippines as the meeting's host would refrain from bringing up south china sea

issues but added it is not his government's concern if other countries discuss them. china claims sovereignty. the philippines has brought the territorial disputes to the permanent court of arbitration in the hague. senior officials from japan and south korea will meet on wednesday in seoul to try to overcome one of their biggest diplomatic hurdles. they will discuss the issue of those referred to as comfort women. japanese prime minister shinzo abe and south korean president park guen-hye agreed last week to speed up talks to reach an early conclusion to the matter. japan will send kimihiro ishikane, the head of the foreign ministry's asian and oceanian affairs bureau. he'll meet south korea's lee sang-deok, the foreign ministry's northeast asian bureau chief. ishikane is expected to stress that the issue has been legally resolved but that japan is willing to consider financial support for the women from a

humanitarian standpoint. if the delegates can reach a conclusion, japan will strongly urge south korea to never raise the issue again. president park told her cabinet that she wants to see the topic settled. >> translator: i hope the issue will be resolved by japan as soon as possible. >> south korea is insisting that the matter should be resolved in a way that is acceptable to the south korean people. russia's sports ministry is trying to defend itself against accusations of cheating in track and field. officials said in a statement they will launch their own investigation into a report by the world anti-doping commission. the report alleges a widespread state sponsored doping program in russia and recommends the country's track and field team be suspended from competition including next year's olympic

games. started probing allegations from a tv documentary. russia's sports ministry said investigations should be based on reliable facts and evidence and not on broadcast information. it stressed it had no authority to determine activities of international sports organizations. environment and energy ministers from around the world have been trying to find common ground on some key issues. they met in paris ahead of a u.n. climate conference but failed to bridge their gaps. the french foreign minister stressed his determination for a deal. >> translator: the ministerial meeting was an important step but much hard work remains. cop 21 must not end without on agreement. >> the ministers ended three days of preparatory talks tuesday in the french capital. they say industrialized and developing countries agreed on the need for a long-term goal to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

but the two sides remained divided. areas including financial support for developing nations. the head of the japanese delegation said the ministers shared a sense of urgency. >> translator: the ministers understand that they have to reach an agreement. more efforts are needed to find common ground on sticking points. >> the u.n. conference will open on november 30th. world leaders will try to agree on a new framework to curb global warming. officials from japan and the u.s. have been able to agree on one issue ahead of the country. we are joined from the business desk. tell us about the proposal. >> coal powered thermal power plants emit a ton of carbon dioxide. as a way to curb emissionathize japanese and the americans came

up with a proposal to limit financing for overseas plants. the agreement came after the two sides differed at a meeting of a working group of the organization for economic cooperation and development. the u.s. officials wanted other industrialized countries to stop financing coal plant projects overseas as a way to stop global warming. the japanese side maintained that tear technology has the highest power efficiency. still sources say the two governments agreed in principle not to allow government affiliated banks to finance coal plants so-called advanced ultrasupercritical plants are excluded from the deal. members of the oecd working group will discuss the proposal ahead of the u.n. climate conference. a joint delegation has

visited pakistan to help jap neez companies do business there. the two nations launched business to promote trade and investment. the delegation met corporate managers on tuesday. vice minister for tradehopes pa easier for japanese firms to invest in the country. the delegation asks the pakistani government to ensure stable power supplies for factories and to improve security. the two sides agreed to cooperate in such fields as automobiles and textiles. with its 180 million people pakistan is seen as a promising consumer market and production base. only about 70 japanese companies operate there mainly due to security concerns. auto makers from around the globe are showcasing their latest models at the international motor show.

the biannual event opened tuesday with more than 150 auto makers taking part and about 600 models on display. the auto industry remains robest. organizers say say the region is expecting sales of 1.9 million vehicles up 5% from last year. one american manufacturer is showing off its latest model ahead of an auto show in the u.s. and a british auto maker is exhibiting a custom order model targeting middle eastern customers. >> we are still confident. what is happening is people are much more cautious in their purchases and therefore they are looking at value and not just make ag big spend. >> japanese auto makers are highlighting luxury cars and sports utility vehicles that already boast strong sales. models include an suv equipped

for terrain unique to the region such as deserts. let's check on markets. tokyo share prices are range bound this morning on worries over the global economy. the nikkei down a little more than 0.1%. investors are awaiting key data out of china later today. that is retail sales and industrial production. weak figures could snap the five-day winning streak. let's move on to currency. the dollar is edging slightly lower from its 2 1/2 month high. traders expect u.s. interest rates to go up. the dollar/yen in the upper 122 yen levels. the dollar hit a 6 1/2 month high against the euro as many are expecting a rate cut in the eurozone the euro is trading at

1.07. over in australia sydney shares trading higher up by a third of a percent. in seoul lower by 0.05%. some of the most popular rice in japan. now researchers have developed a technique for creating a variety that can help sick people and they are trying to expert that know how overseas. nhk world has the story. >> reporter: the researchers work for this company have figured out how to reduce the amount of protein in rice grains cht this rice is designed for people with kidney disease who need to limit their protein intake. the researchers use an enzyme to break down the protein. the technique can cut to just 4%

in orderinary varieties of rice but the taste is still the same. >> translator: many people who tried the low protein rice say they didn't notice any difference. i think we have produced some good results. >> reporter: in january company officials signed a contract with state-run university to jointly develop low protein rice for the market. the project was created to address the needs of people in thailand. rice has been a staple food in the country but economic lows has caused diets to become more diverse. led to some health problems. a survey found the rate of kidney disease doubled between 2004 and 2008. another issue is thailand's rice

export industry. prices have been falling due to fierce competition with other countries in southeast asia. so the team hopes low protein rice can help people who are sick and boost farmers by giving them a value-added product to sell. but first they need to resolve some difficulties. one challenge comes from the differences between rice grown in japan and rice in thailand. grains of thai rice are thinning and contain more protein. the technique for making low protein rice is to soak the grains overnight in water that contains an enzyme and then dry them. project members have to adjust the technique for indigo rice.

they are trying to figure out how long to dry the grains and at what temperature. >> translator: thai rice has a very slender shape so it breaks easily and it is tough to handle. it's also rather dry and not so springy. so it's difficult to maintain the texture. >> translator: i hope we will be able to develop the processing technology so that sick people in thailand can eat high quality rice. >> translator: i'm really glad the technology we develop in japan can be used in other parts of the world. >> reporter: the project team aims to get low protein rice on the thai market in two years. nhk world. >> and that's the latest in business news for this hour. it's back to katherine.

japanese officials are considering approving a robotic suit. an expert panel of the health ministry is working on the praumg. people with eight diseases including als would be able to make use of the suits. patients with rare intractable diseases who don't have other effective treatment options have high expectations for the suits. >> translator: i asked my doctor about drugs, but i was told it is hopeless. i was disappointed. >> sato developed spinal and bulbar muscular atrophy about 20 years ago and spends most of his time in a wheelchair. he wants to walk freely on his o own two feet. when a handicapped person tries to move a leg, faint signals in the brain sent through nerves reach the muscles. a sensor in the suit detects the electrical signals in the skin and starts a motor. oo the motor moves the device to help the person walk.

in clinical testing on 24 patients at nine hospitals users were able to walk about 10% longer than they could without the suit. sato said if he practiced the suit could be beneficial. experts say repeated use of the device will improve the walking capabilities of disabled people. the ministry plans to examine the suit's performance for five years to confirm its safety and effectiveness. the wearable medical robot would become the first to be approved in japan. officials in japan have been taking a closer look at a certain group of workers concerned by a group of businesses who take advantage of students so they surveyed those who have part-time jobs. the results suggest questionable labor practices are widespread. nhk world tells us more.

>> reporter: this woman is a university student who teaches part time at a craft school in tokyo. she has been keeping a record of how many hours she works and how much she gets paid. one day she worked for about 3 1/2 hours, but she made only about $16. that is well below the legal minimum hourly wage of $6 per hour. sometimes she has to work outside of the classroom. for that she says she receives a flat rate of $5 a day. but the woman says she had little choice but to keep her job. she says she needs to earn money so she can continue her studies at graduate school. stories like this one prompted officials at the labor ministry to take action. they surveyed 1,000 working students to find out more about the situation. the results were published on

monday. 59% of respondents say their employers didn't provide written explanation of working conditions as required by law. 15% said they were told to work longer than they initially agreed to. 14% said they didn't get paid for any work they did before or after their shifts. all told, more than 60% of students surveyed said they had experienced unfair labor practices in some form. >> translator: my manager gives me a 12-hour working shift and only one day off a week. i doubt he ever remembers that i'm a student. >> translator: many of my friends say they are forced to work long hours without breaks. that's really harsh. >> reporter: now, some students have started to fight back. they formed a nationwide union

to negotiate working conditions and unfair labor practices with companies. we visited the union's officers. staff members advise students of problems at their part-time jobs. it has received about 800 work-related complaints. >> translator: we offer one-on-one consultations and give students advice and suggestions on how to solve their problems. in some cases we negotiate with companies and finalize contracts to protect students from unfair labor practices. >> reporter: this is an expert on work-related problems among young people. she says the issue is finally gaining widespread attention. >> translator: many businesses have been cutting the number of regular employees, and part-time workers are being hired to fill if gap. the government must take measures to ensure that part-timers are not exploited, and society in general should do more to help young workers.

>> reporter: working students in japan have been caught up in broader trends with shaping the japanese labor market, sometimes to their disadvantage. now they are learning to speak up and fight exploitation. reporting for nhk world, tokyo. it's time for a check on the weather. meteorologist robert speta joins us with more. >> i want to start off talking about this. it's not anything that is dramatic as far as we see with flooding and tornadoes, for example, but the impacts are widespread. that is a drought out here since last summer in 2014 to 2015 across the southern areas here in africa and specifically south africa. you have been seeing already so far going into the summer water restrictions in place for those of you in johannesburg.

crops have been damaged. i want to show you photos. this is in new castle. a lot of these lake beds drying up. a lot of rivers running dry. water shortage is definitely a key issue. one of the other effects of that because you are looking at a shortage of rainfall and water is the threat to a lot of crops. farmers having a hard time going ahead with this. in 2014 and 2015 alone about a third of the maize crops were lost. it's a very serious situation and really being exasperated by the el nino which is causing a difference in the weather patterns. we have jet stream dipping. you are looking at less rainfall there along the southern tip. typically the driest months of the year. farther north you look at the intertropic convergence zone and

you should have rainfall come into the forecast. weather patterns are sbichwitchp a little bit. really an ongoing situation. hopefully good storms come through here and replenish the lack of water. let's talk about what is going on here into eastern asia. most of japan you are looking at high pressure dominating the forecast and clear skies setting up on your wednesday. still snowfall into ho kideo. we have another low developing in southeastern china going to push towards the east bringing fairly heavy rain showers but much of japan could feel the impacts of this by the latter part of your work week. high pressure continuing to sit in place. unfortunately, it is reducing those air quality, some unhealthy air there. shifting off towards the east. temperatures cooling off. sunny skies in tokyo getting up

to 18 a little cooler than your tuesday cht partly cloudy skies. here into europe really this is a topic of two different weather patterns across this area. down towards the south we have high pressure dominating. as i like to say big bubble no trouble. you have this bubble of high pressure lack of weather. and that is going to be creating warm and dry conditions for the most part. we do have wet and windy weather. fairly windy conditions towards poland about 79 kilometer winds. the next big storm is moving into the british aisles towards the north. something to watch out for if you have travel plans in that area you want to be prepared for delays at the airports. really quickly speaking of travel plans could see severe thunderstorms here in the central u.s. on your wednesday. i'll leave you now with your extended outlook.

and that's all for this edition of "newsline." i'm catherine kobayashi in tokyo. thanks for joining us.

>> hello, and a very warm welcome to another edition of global 3000. are you sitting comfortably? i only ask, because if are, you might want to be rethinking that cosy armchair position, because we're off to one of our most energetic starts yet. morning drill practice -- early learning, taiwanese style. ancient answers to a modern problem -- using inka knowledge to fight drought in the andes. and exporting democracy -- ghana's role in training u.n. troops for deployment around the