The government decided Tuesday that the expansion of Tokyo's Haneda airport to allow more international flights and the construction of beltway systems in major cities will be designated as urban redevelopment projects, officials said.

The government's urban renewal headquarters, headed by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, also decided to include the promotion of private-sector funds for developing social infrastructure, establishing a life science center in Osaka, and boosting child-care support for working parents in its urban redevelopment projects, the officials said.

The projects are expected to receive preferential treatment in the fiscal 2002 budget.

During the panel meeting, Koizumi said he hopes his Cabinet ministers will strive for early implementation of the projects, they said.

The panel also drew up a plan to improve urban dwellers' quality of life by focusing on the development of downtown commercial buildings, securing space for houses and welfare facilities, carrying out recycling and waste management measures, and promoting buildings that are more easily accessible to people with disabilities. And as an emergency measure in response to the nation's severe economic conditions, the panel also decided to relax regulations on private-sector urban development projects, they said.