Selection Committee Chair Prof. Shigeto Sonoda

his is the second time for me to read application documents as the chair of the Selection Committee, and I’ve realized that my evaluation standards became higher than in the previous fiscal year. This is because I read impressive applications last year, which eventually elevated the selection criteria. Perhaps because of this, I felt this year’s selection was not as difficult as before.
As in previous years, we called for proposals on any of the five themes below.

(1) Creation of an environment for maximizing the skills and potential of foreign talent
(2) Minimizing gaps among foreign residents in their access to information
(3) Examination of human and other resources in support of the care and support systems for foreign residents
(4) Attracting skilled human resources from abroad
(5) Lessons from insights and experiences gained through Japanese companies’ overseas operations

The proposal submission period was from September 4 (Mon.) to November 18 (Sat.), 2023. During this period, approximately 100 people, which is roughly twice the number of last year, participated in two online briefing sessions that we held on September 14 and September 20. Program officers (POs) held approximately 20 preliminary consultations, which is about the same number as before.
The total number of projects that were registered increased from 68 to 90. In the end, 54 project representatives applied for grants, which is 10 projects more than in FY 2022.
The median amount requested by the 54 applications was 10 million yen (with a minimum of 5 million yen and a maximum of 10 million yen), with more than half of the applications requesting 10 million yen. Therefore, before the selection process had begun it was predicted that the number of selected applicants would not be large.
In terms of the attributes of the projects' representatives, 17 were full-time university researchers, a significant increase from 12 in the previous fiscal year, while 8 were NPO/NGO staff, a decrease from 11 in FY 2022. This change has to do with an increase in the number of applications whose themes were related to (4) attracting skilled human resources from abroad. The results of the questionnaire that 38 of the applicants answered show that a total of 18 people had experience applying for grants, and 11 of them had experience applying for this program.
Many of the 26 previously awarded projects were related to themes (1) and (2), while only a small number of them covered the themes of (4) and (5). However, we could sense a change from the previous trends, and it is particularly noteworthy that the number of applications as well as selected projects on theme (4) has increased.

The POs first reviewed the application documents and removed those that were incomplete or did not meet the prerequisites, and then three members of the Selection Committee read all applications carefully. After reading the applications, the committee members put questions to the representatives of good projects to check whether an award was justified.
A meeting of the Selection Committee was held on February 9, 2024. The committee's discussion lasted almost two hours and it decided to award grants to six projects. Below is a brief introduction to each project.

D23-MG-0017 Megumi Yuki, Professor, Gunma University
“Development of a Model for Promoting the Inflow of High-skilled Talent and Enhancing the Acceptance Environment Based on the Decision-making Process Regarding the Selection of 'Rural' Areas for High-skilled Talent”

This project, which is related to themes (1) and (4), seeks to create a flow of high skilled human resources in Japan who choose to work and settle in rural areas through a collaboration involving the industrial, government, academia and financial sectors. Specifically, it aims to establish a consortium centered on Gunma University to develop a curriculum that promotes local employment and to clarify its effectiveness by comparing the case of Gunma with other regions. Kobayashi's proposal in D23-MG-0030 targets the second generation of settled foreigners, while this proposal targets foreign students studying at universities. Both of them, however, share the same view of foreign human resources as providing a breakthrough for local revitalization. While the feasibility of the projects was positively evaluated, there was an opinion in the Selection Committee that careful investigation would be required in the modeling of the retention of highly skilled human resources by checking the significance of variables which were not mentioned in the applications.

D23-MG-0021　Yasuhiro Inoue, Vice President, Osaka Restaurant Management Association
“Study on Mismatch Structure between Foreign Job Seekers and Job Providers in the Food Service Industry and Development of Resolves”

This project, which is related to theme (2), aims to clarify the mismatch between foreign job seekers and job providers in Japan by focusing on the food service industry. This is a timely proposal, given the current situation in the food service industry where the labor shortage is becoming a serious problem. This project is attractive because the applicant specifically focuses on job seekers from Indonesia and tries to consider the situation of the sending country. However, some members of the Selection Committee pointed out that the project should be managed with care, because (1) it is necessary to carefully plan the research, including the kinds of jobs job seekers had in their sending country and (2) it is indispensable to take into account not only the situation in the labor market but also the job seekers' living conditions, lifestyles, languages, etc. in Japan.

D23-MG-0030 Kaori Kobayashi, Associate Professor, School of Cross-Cultural Studies, Sugiyama Jogakuen University
“Toyota City Initiative! A Joint Industry-Government-Academia Collaboration to Promote Multicultural Regional Co-Creation for the Next Generation of Foreign Residents Settling in Japan”

This project, which is related to theme (1), targets the next generation of foreign residents from Brazil, Vietnam, the Philippines, etc. who are settling in Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture, and it intends to nurture the sustainability of the region by supporting them in their careers. It aims to revitalize the local economy by promoting multicultural tourism mainly through support for the next generation of foreign residents in collaboration with universities, governments, companies, NPOs, and so on. It was appraised as a highly feasible proposal, given that it was well-planned and coordinated with relevant stakeholders. On the other hand, some members of the Selection Committee requested that where the problem lies be clarified after critically examining the attempts that Toyota City has made in past years and that the project should encourage the city to collaborate with other municipalities that are in a similar environment.

D23-MG-0034 Kenichi Shishido, Board of Director/Acting Secretary General, JP-MIRAI
“Development of Educational Materials for SMEs and Social Awareness to Improve the Environment for Accepting Migrant Workers”

This proposal, tackling theme (1), is an initiative aiming to develop educational materials targeting SMEs that cannot spend sufficient time to protect the human rights of foreign employees due to the lack of specialized staff who are familiar with labor laws and regulations. This project will take measures such as providing sufficient motivation to people in charge to expand this initiative by exemplary companies throughout supply chains, regions, industries and financial sectors. This proposal was highly evaluated due to its high feasibility through the collaboration with university teachers, lawyers and ILO experts. On the other hand, the Selection Committee wanted to read a detailed explanation of what was lacking in the existing educational materials and what the contents of the new educational materials would look like.

D23-MG-0036 Koichi Nakamura, Representative Director, eboard
“Development of a ‘Yasashii Nihongo (Plain Japanese)’ Tool Using Generative AI and a Model for Its Effective Use in the Educational Field”

This proposal, which has to do with theme (2), aims to create a software application that will use "simplified Japanese" for descendants of foreign residents in the compulsory education system, something which has been neglected despite a growing awareness within national and local government organizations of the need to popularize "simplified Japanese." The proposal was praised for sensing the needs in the educational field, partly because the NPO to which the representative belongs has been working on adding "easy subtitles" to video lessons. The Selection Committee claimed that (1) it was difficult to understand the difference between "simplified Japanese" using normal generative AI and "simplified Japanese" at schools and that (2) careful consideration should be given to whether to charge the educational institutions a fee for the service.

D23-MG-0042 Ryo Watanuki, President, Research Institute of Japan Industry & Innovation
“Research on Business Conditions of Foreign Entrepreneurs in Japan and Experimental Implementation of Supporting Programme for the Establishment of Necessarely Management Support”

This proposal, which is related to theme (4), focuses on foreign entrepreneurs, who have been overlooked in current discussions of the development of highly skilled human resources, to investigate the actual situation surrounding them and seek support measures for them. This project is quite attractive because it intends to clarify the actual situation of foreign entrepreneurs, who have been rarely researched, by using a list of more than 1,500 foreign entrepreneurs who have attended seminars organized by the applicant. On the other hand, the Selection Committee is aware that the key to the success of the investigation is whether they can get access to the foreign entrepreneurs (especially those who are from Asia other than Korean or Chinese) who are missing from the current list while ensuring feasibility.

Many of those who applied for this program had applied in the past, but none of those who were awarded grants were the representatives of previously selected projects. One possible reason is that new types of attractive proposals were excavated as interest in the use of highly skilled human resources has increased. Another reason may be that applicants who are interested in the themes of (2) and (3) are still implementing their projects, which made it difficult to apply this time. I would like to keep an eye on future trends to see what types of proposals will increase.
In the previous fiscal year, the total amount of the grants awarded was 47.5 million yen, 2.5 million yen short of the originally expected amount. In the current fiscal year, however, the total amount has increased 5 million yen from the originally planned 50 million yen. This is because the total amount charged by each project was large. I sincerely hope that those who were awarded grants will use them effectively.