From June 4 to June 11, five Asian trainees of the OISCA Chubu Nippon Training Center, located in Toyota City, in the suburbs of Nagoya, came over to Tokyo to undergoing on-site training. The group of trainees consists of five people from four countries (one Indian, one Sri Lankan, one Indonesian, and two Filipinos). All trainees are in their second year in Japan. The purpose of the on-site training program in Tokyo was to deepen participants’ understanding not only of agriculture but also of OISCA’s activities in general.
The day after arriving in Tokyo, the group of trainees headed to the Natori coast in Miyagi Prefecture, where OISCA is carrying out its coastal forest restoration project. In Natori, they toured the coastal forest and visited the OISCA Natori office to hold an opinion exchange session.
The following day, they participated in volunteer activities such as cutting vines. At the coastal forest restoration project site. The group also observed the Yuriage Morning Market and visited the Natori City Earthquake Memorial Museum.
Back in Tokyo on the afternoon of June 7, at the OISCA headquarters office, they received on June 8 at the OISCA headquarters office, lectures from OISCA executive staff on the Mt. Fuji Reforestation Project, Capacity Development Program, and other activities. In the late afternoon of the same day, the trainees held a presentation for OISCA staff members. They all talked about their respective community of origin, their former professional background, their specific activities at the Chubu Training Center, and their perspectives for the future.
An Indian trainee from Kerala revealed that at the Chubu Training Center, he learned strict time management, waste management, and Japanese work practices. He expressed his desire to share these lessons with his community people upon returning home and to help bring about improvements.
The Philippine female trainee, who was formerly working at OISCA Bago Training Center in Negros Occidental, said that she is learning home economics at the Chubu Center. Specifically, she is studying Japanese cuisine, making bread and cakes, and western dressmaking. She said that in the future, she would like to return to the Bago Training Center to continue working there, while also opening her own bakery.
The fellow Filipino who came from Nueva Ecija Province in Central Luzon, said that before coming to Japan, he was helping his parents in managing a farm. They are cultivating rice, onions, and sweet potatoes. Then, he studied at the OISCA Nueva Ecija Training Center, where he learned how to raise pigs, goats, chickens, and ducks. At the Chubu Training Center, he is learning how to operate tractors and how to rear chickens. He emphasized that after returning to his country, he would like to teach the farmers there what he learned at the Chubu Training Center.
The Sri Lankan trainee said previously he was with the National Youth Services (NYSC), a public organization which has close ties with OISCA Sri Lanka. NYSC was cultivating mushrooms, chili peppers, and cinnamon. Chili peppers sell for the highest prices. At the Chubu Training Center, he is learning how to cultivate seasonal vegetables, including tomatoes, and rice farming. He admitted that rice farming is the most difficult. He said that from now on, he wants to focus on growing mushrooms and flowers. He revealed his ambition to expand into restaurant business in the future.
The last speaker was the trainee from Sulawesi Island, Indonesia. Before coming to Japan, he was a university student, but took a break from university, and entered the OISCA Sukabumi Training Center. He learned there how to raise mushrooms, melons, and chili peppers. After returning home, he wants to continue university studies and graduate. He also expressed an interest in improving local infrastructure and teaching the residents modern farming techniques.
Following the presentation session, they attended an informal social gathering with light meals and drinks and had a lively conversation with OISCA staff.
On June 10, the trainee group went to Mitaka, a city in the suburbs of Tokyo, and visited the JA Tokyo Musashi Mitaka Greening Center. Later, they visited two farms specializing in nursery plants and vegetable cultivation.
On the last day of their stay in Tokyo, they visited Tokyo University of Agriculture and met with Dr. Prachakii Babil, a former graduate from OISCA Senior High School who is currently an associate professor at the Tokyo University of Agriculture. He gave the trainees an overview of the university and showed them around the campus facilities.
from the top of Cycle Sports Center in Yuriage, Natori
