The 15th Preparatory Japanese-Language Training for Filipino Nurse and Care Worker Candidates under the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA) successfully came to a close during a virtual Closing Ceremony held last June 1st, 2023, approximately half a year since it began on November 16th, 2022. Two hundred and thirty-one candidates, comprising fifteen (15) nurse candidates and two hundred and sixteen (216) certified care worker candidates, successfully completed the six-month Japanese-language training program.

The virtual closing ceremony opened with the singing of the National Anthems of the Philippines and Japan, followed by opening remarks delivered by Mr. SUZUKI Tsutomu “Ben”, Director of The Japan Foundation, Manila. In his remarks, Mr. Suzuki lauded the introduction of a hybrid learning system for this batch of candidates (i.e. the switch from a purely online class setting to a partial face-to-face set-up at the Nihongo Center Foundation, Manila), and expressed his amazement at being able to maintain a large-scale communication platform where learning can still happen even with teachers and students scattered all over the country.

He also emphasized the role of the candidates as future citizen diplomats; he reminded them that, as global Filipinos, they are expected to contribute in fostering a deeper spirit of mutual understanding and goodwill between the Philippines and Japan.

Following Mr. Suzuki’s opening remarks were messages from the honorable guests in attendance. Atty. Hans Leo J. Cacdac, Undersecretary for Welfare and Foreign Employment at the Department of Migrant Workers, shared that he liked how the JPEPA program “strikes at the heart of Filipino service” and highlighted the Filipinos’ natural talent for caring and providing care.

Mr. KANNO Chihiro, First Secretary and Labour Attaché of the Economic Section of the Embassy of Japan, expressed that the Japanese people are truly grateful for the Filipinos who choose to go to Japan for work, referencing the more than 3,000 nurse and certified care workers that have been sent to Japan under the JPEPA program since 2009.

Mr. KATAOKA Yoshikazu, Managing Director and member of the Board of Directors of the Japan International Corporation of Welfare Services (JICWELS), informed the candidates of the different forms of support that will be available to them once they begin the next phase of their training in Japan.

Mr. Philip B. Sanvictores, President of the Nihongo Center Foundation, Inc., also took the stage to address the candidates. He reminded them of all the blessings they’ve received as beneficiaries of the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA), and emphasized the importance of passing these blessings forward, not only to their own families, friends, and country, but also to all the different people they will encounter in Japan, including their superiors, their peers, and the patients they will be looking after.

In his words: “Please preserve the good name of our country, your fellow Filipinos here and in Japan, your community, and your family. You are not just professionals in Japan. You are frontline ambassadors of the Philippines to Japan.”

The inspirational messages were followed by the Awarding of Certificates, led by Mr. SUZUKI Ben. Soft copies of the certificates will be sent to the two hundred and thirty one (231) candidates who completed the program.

Finally, the ceremony ended with a video presentation shown to the candidates. The video presentation contained messages from their lecturers from The Japan Foundation and the Nihongo Center Foundation, Inc. expressing their congratulations and well-wishes.

The 231 candidates are set to fly to Japan in the coming months, where they will undergo another six-month Japanese-language training program before they can be assigned to their respective hospitals and caregiving facilities in Japan.

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Speech of Mr. Philip B. Sanvictores