On February 26, the 47th OISCA International Tokyo Forum was held at the International Conference Room of the First Members’ Office Building of the House of Representatives, located near the National Diet in Tokyo. The forum is designed to gain a better understanding of OISCA’s activities and exchange frank opinions among representatives of foreign diplomatic missions in Japan. It was attended by 12 diplomats from 10 countries, including 4 Ambassadors (Malaysia, Palau, Sri Lanka, and Uzbekistan) and 1 Charge d’Affaires a.i. (Myanmar). In addition, high-ranking officials from Japan’s Foreign Ministry and observers from OISCA supporting companies (Mitsubishi Motor Corporation and Tokyu Hotels & Resorts Co., Ltd) came over to attend.
Before the opening of the forum, Ms. Hamasaki Kairi, OISCA young staff in charge of Overseas Project, International Cooperation Division, briefed on the overall proceedings of the meeting and the printed materials distributed.
The forum was formally opened by Mr. Kitsuki Fumio, Secretary General of OISCA International, with brief remarks. He introduced Ms. Nakano Etsuko, OISCA International President, senior management officials of OISCA, observers from the OISCA supporting companies, and foreign diplomats.
Thereafter, Ms. Nakano Etsuko gave a welcome speech. At the outset, she expressed her condolences to those who lost their lives in the huge typhoon damage that devastated Southeast Asian countries late last year and also other natural disasters that occurred around the world.
She then briefly touched on the history of OISCA, which was founded in 1961 by Rev. Nakano Yonosuke. The founder advocated that the world was one despite the differences in ethnicity, language, religion, customs, etc., and aimed to build a society where material development and spiritual enrichment advance simultaneously as two wheels of a single cart.
Regarding specific activities of OISCA, she mentioned, among other things, the Mt. Fuji Restoration Project, which was started in 2007 and marks its 20th anniversary this year. She said that she would welcome frank and candid opinions and feedback from the diplomatic representatives.
Meanwhile, this year’s forum was graced by the presence of Mr. Ishiba Shigeru, Member of the House of Representatives, and Chairman of the Japanese Diet Members Supporting OISCA. Last year, he served as Prime Minister of Japan. Despite his extremely busy schedule with the ongoing Diet deliberations, he spared his precious time to deliver a speech. Mr. Ishiba stated that OISCA is a long-established NGO in Japan. He has been supporting OISCA’s activities from the early days. He affirmed that Japan lacks the military power to dominate the world and no longer possesses the economic strength it once did, but it does possess technological capabilities and human resources development capabilities that can be shared with other nations. He concluded by saying that the Japanese government will continue to assist OISCA and other NGOs for international cooperation.
For her part, Ms. Nishizaki Toshimi, Ambassador for Civil Society, Deputy Assistant Minister/Deputy Director-General of the International Cooperation Bureau, Foreign Ministry, thanked OISCA for inviting her to the forum. It was the first time for her to attend the meeting. She said that the Foreign Ministry is supporting OISCA by providing grant assistance for NGO projects. Specifically, she referred to the grant assistance extended for OISCA’s projects in Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Uzbekistan.
Afterwards Mr. Kitsuki of OISCA, made a general presentation with the aid of slides. He first explained the visions and missions of OISCA and then touched on capacity development, sustainable agricultural development, afforestation activities, and Children’s Forest Program (CFP).
Thereafter, the meeting moved to an open dialogue with Mr. Nagaishi Yasuaki, Executive Vice President of OISCA International, serving as a moderator. Prior to the start of the dialogue, Mr. Nagaishi presented an overview of recent major events related to OISCA.
He enumerated the conclusion of MOU with the government of Palau in December 2025, the presentation of financial donation by the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Thai Embassy in Japan to the OISCA project in Northern Thailand, the signing of MOU with the Fiji Development Bank (FDB) last February, and MARA-OISCA International Business Forum which took place on Langkawi Island, Malaysia.
Ambassador Abdurakhmonov Mukhsinkhuja of Uzbekistan was the first diplomat to take the podium. He impressed the audience by making his speech in fluent Japanese. He expressed his appreciation to OISCA for the reforestation project carried out in the Aral Sea desert area. He said that the establishment of OISCA Uzbekistan Chapter last July contributed to strengthening the operational structure and expected the continued cooperation from the Association of Japanese Diet Members Supporting OISCA.
In response, Mr. Nagaishi said that OISCA is focusing not only on tree planting but also on supporting the improvement of the livelihood of the local community residents.
The Ambassador of Palau pointed out that the signing of the MOU with OISCA last December is expected to contribute to promoting cooperation in agriculture and mitigate the problem of food security because his country depends on 90% imports of food items.
The Ambassador of Malaysia expressed his happiness that the recent MARA-OISCA Business Forum in Langkawi ended in success. He wished that the visit to Japan of the Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister, who is concurrently the President of OISCA Malaysia Chapter will be realized within this year.
Mr. Nagaishi replied that OISCA’s cooperative relations with Malaysia are long-running, dating back to 1976. OISCA has been carrying out technical and vocational training programs through MARA.
The Counselor of the Embassy of Timor-Leste, referring to the human resources development program implemented by OISCA, expressed the hope that the number of trainees for the internship program would be increased.
Mr. Nagaishi said that, unfortunately, due to the severe budgetary constraints, OISCA can accept only a small number of trainees every year. He added that it might be a good idea to take advantage of Japanese private sponsors.
All other diplomats said that OISCA’s activities in their countries are a significant contribution to national development.
In conclusion, Mr. Nagaishi expressed his gratitude to the diplomatic corps, the Foreign Ministry officials, and the representatives of private companies for their positive participation in the meeting.
