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Review of the Establishment of a "Social Inclusion Program (Tentative)" for Foreign Residents

There have been press reports and announcements regarding the Japanese government's consideration of establishing a new Japanese language education program for foreign residents. The following is a summary of relevant articles and blog posts.

1. Status of Consideration by the Government and Ruling Parties (from Asahi Shimbun)

Source: Asahi Shimbun Digital

The government and ruling parties have begun considering the establishment of a "Social Inclusion Program (tentative name)" for mid-to-long-term foreign residents to learn Japanese and the Japanese social system.

The main points are as follows:

• Objective: To prevent friction with local communities and curb the rise of exclusionary sentiment by adding program participation as a factor in residency status examinations.
• Items under Consideration:
  • Target residency statuses.
  • The nature of "Preschools (tentative name)" where foreign children can learn basic knowledge, including Japanese, before entering Japanese schools.
  • Creation of Japanese language education guidelines for municipalities to reference.
• Future Steps: Adjustments are being made to include these points in the interim summary to be compiled soon by the Liberal Democratic Party's Project Team (PT), which is reviewing the "optimization" of foreign resident systems.

2. Background of Government Policy and International Examples (from the Prime Minister's Aide Blog)

Source: Blog of the Prime Minister's Aide (Member of the House of Representatives)

The Prime Minister's Aide, responsible for "Enhancement of Japanese Language Education for Foreign Residents (Adults and Children)" under the Takichi administration, has published information regarding current issues and examples from other countries.

Current Status and Issues in Japan

• Rapid Increase in Specified Skilled Worker (ii) (Family Accompaniment Allowed): As of the end of June this year, the number of residents in this category was approximately 3,000 (about 3.7 times that of the end of last year), and further increase is expected.
• Lack of Acceptance Structure: About 40% of municipalities nationwide lack Japanese language education facilities, making it difficult to rely solely on municipalities and volunteers.
• Issues in Educational Settings: Elementary and junior high schools attended by non-native Japanese speaking children satisfy the need for the placement of "Japanese language education professionals."
• Japanese Proficiency of Entrants: There are concerns regarding the Japanese language acquisition status of new workers entering the country (Training Employment starting in 2027 and Specified Skilled Worker (i)).

Examples of Systems in Other Countries (Germany, France, South Korea)

The systems in each country, as surveyed by the National Diet Library, are as follows.

Future Policy Proposals

Citing that current training in Japan (such as the 100-hour voluntary training by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare) is insufficient, the following directions have been indicated:

• Consideration of creating a program for foreign residents to learn the Japanese language and Japanese systems/rules necessary for daily life.
• Consideration of making a certain level of Japanese proficiency (exam results) a condition for "Long-term Resident" or "Permanent Resident" status, or for naturalization.

*This article has been compiled and created based on the information from the sources cited above.