Since the project is finally taking a shape, Mr. Emmanuel Wepngong Jato, one of the exchange students of 2021 from Protestant Institute of Arts and Social Sciences (PIASS), Rwanda, sent us an message for his supporters. He is the first exchange students from Cameroon to TUFS, and are eager to learn Japanese history, language, practices, and so on.

His airfare will be supported by Inter-University Exchange Project (Africa) at TUFS, and the support fund from our crowdfunding project which we conducted in spring 2020 will be used to support their life expenses. (They will receive scholarship from JASSO every month as their life expenses, but we cannot say it is sufficient for international students to live in Tokyo.)

The following is Jato's message.

I am Emmanuel Wepngong JATO a Cameroonian by birth pursuing Peace and Conflict Studies at the Protestant Institute of Arts and Social Science (PIASS) in Rwanda. I was selected for the exchange program at the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies Spring program 2022. My interest is to learn about the peacebuilding process of Japan from the violence and trauma due to WWII to the current peaceful state and economic development of the country. Also, to have interactions with students and professors from all over the world present at the campus which will increase my communication skills, take part in different clubs for learning and diversity of courses delivered at TUFS, and visit historical sites. I am keen on new intercultural knowledge such as Japanese language, religion, rituals and practices.

I would express my sincere gratitude to the Innovative Africa Educational Networking Program (IAfP) and Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO) and everyone who will be taking care of my expense of airfare and my stay in Japan. Moreover, I deeply appreciate Tokyo University of Foreign Studies and African Studies Center for giving me this great opportunity to be part of a learning program.