Japan will soon resume sending volunteers to pass on relevant skills to other countries, including the Philippines.
The Japanese Embassy in the Philippines announced on Tuesday, June 21, that the Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JOCV) Program will resume the dispatch of volunteers, more than two years after it was halted due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
"The resumption of the Program will be officially announced in the near future, as cases are now on the downtrend and with mobility restrictions currently easing up," the embassy said.
It was disclosed that two Japanese volunteers will be deployed in the Philippines.
Mr. Takuya Sekiguchi, an ICT and PC instructor, will be assigned in Cavite while Ms. Yoshimi Miyagawa, a culinary expert, will be dispatched to Rizal.
The JOCV is an overseas volunteer program for Japanese nationals who wish to play a role in the nation-building process of developing countries, where they live amongst the local populace as they pass on their relevant knowledge and skills.
The embassy said the Japanese volunteers "work towards enhancing bilateral friendly relations at the grassroots level by directly immersing in the local lifestyle and culture."
The Philippines is one of four countries where JOCVs were officially dispatched after the signing agreement in 1966.
Armed with various skills in areas of agriculture, health, education, and technology, among others, they went out of their comfort zones to live with local Filipinos and provided critical technical assistance at the grassroots level.
Over the years, more than 1,600 Japanese have been dispatched to the Philippines.
The JOCV was conferred the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 2016.