Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson signed a Memorandum of Agreement with OISCA International, Japan and OISCA Bago Training Center (OBTC) for a three-month Japanese Language and Culture Training of nine scholars bound for Japan in a virtual meeting at the Governor’s Office, on Monday, November 15.
OISCA International, Japan was represented by its Secretary-General Yasuaki Nagaishi while OISCA Bago Training Center was represented by its director, Shigemi Watanabe.
This program is a pioneering collaboration between the provincial government of Negros Occidental and OISCA International Japan on education and employment for highly-skilled young Negrense professionals, a press release from the Capitol said.
This scholarship program is aimed at providing and opening doors of opportunities to Negrenses to be able to study and eventually work in Japan by honing their skills in Japanese language and culture, it said.
The MOA states that the provincial government will set and allocate budget for the Japanese language course at OISCA Bago Training Center on a study now, pay later scheme as pre-departure training required by Japan and provide assistance for visa processing and Japanese Proficiency Test.
OISCA International will take charge of the processing of the Certificate of Eligibility (COE) and working visa of the qualified scholars; look for companies interested in assisting the scholars with a three-month JLPT in preparation for the N3 examination and matching these companies with the education, training and skills of the scholars they want to hire as well as provide airfares of the scholars to Japan.
OBTC will facilitate the venue and food accommodation and Japanese language training in the province.
Watanabe thanked the governor for supporting the program for young professionals. He said that the screening process of OISCA International was very rigid although it was done virtually because the applicants must meet the qualification standards required by the companies.
Nagaishi said that OISCA was established in 1961 and this year, the organization marks its 60th Anniversary.
He said that OISCA International celebrates the various programs they have initiated like youth development, agriculture, children’s forest program and reforestation in the Philippines.
Japan is currently facing a shortage of manpower while Philippines has excess of qualified professionals willing to work there, Nagaishi added.
“I think that this program is beneficial to both Japan and the Philippines,” he added.
The MOA signing was facilitated by the Negros Occidental Scholarship Program Division led by Karen Dinsay who also presented the rationale of the program.
SP Committee Chair on Education, BM Tinto Bascon thanked OISCA International for partnering with the Province of Negros Occidental through this program.
Present during the activity were OISCA International, Japan officials and personnel Akira Morita, Hiroyuki Matsuno, Asaji Fujime, Masafumi Yoshioka, Yochiro Nakano, Atsuo Sugahara and Haruki Nakagawa while Negros Occidental attendees included Thelma Watanabe of OISCA Bago Training Center, April Joy Duran of SPCD and Thea Marie Palacio of NOSPD.*