The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Japan continues its youth exchange programs with the Youth-Exchange Project with Asia-Oceania and North America , or the KIZUNA Project . The Kizuna Project, the word kizuna meaning “bonds”, will invite more than 10,000 youths from the Asian/Oceanian regions, including 285 Filipinos , to have an opportunity to participate in specially designed programs. The project was approved by the Japanese Diet as a part of the third supplementary budget in November 2011, and will be implemented by the end of March 2013.
One of the programs under the KIZUNA Project is the KIZUNA Short Term Program. Under this program, 207 university students ages 18- 24 years old, along with 16 supervisors , will be invited to Japan for a 2-week immersion. During their stay in Japan, the students will be hosted by local families. As part of their KIZUNA Project participation, they will also be visiting the Tohoku region affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake to observe reconstruction in the area. Aside from this, the students will also participate in lectures and workshops about the reconstruction efforts and disaster risk management of Japan. The program will allow the participants to experience first-hand the efforts underway at disaster sites that are dynamically engaged in recovery initiatives, and to promote better understanding on the reconstruction in Japan.
This KIZUNA Program is coordinated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Japan through the cooperation of the Japan Information and culture Center (JICC) of the Embassy of Japan, and the National Youth Commission (NYC) of the Philippines. Below is the distribution of slots and duration of the Kizuna program.
BATCH |
NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS |
DURATION |
STUDENTS |
SUPERVISORS |
Batch 1 |
Forty-six (46) |
Four (4) |
December 10 to 19, 2012 |
Batch 2 |
Seventy-seven (77) |
Six (6) |
March 11-20, 2013 |
Batch 3 |
Eighty-four (84) |
Six (6) |
March 18 to 27, 2013 |
Application to the KIZUNA Program ends on September 28, 2012 (Friday). For qualification, guidelines, and application forms, please visit the National Youth Commission website ( http://www.nyc.gov.ph/ ). For inquiries, please contact Ms. Marielou A. Chua or Ms. Sarah Grutas of NYC at 4162833 and at internationalprograms@nyc.gov.ph .
All expenses incurred during the program will be borne by the Government of Japan.
Click here (word, pdf) for guidelines
