Japan scraps ‘Africa Hometown’ project after after Nigeria’s ‘special visas’ controversy
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has announced it is terminating its “JICA Africa Hometown” initiative, citing “misunderstandings and confusion” over the project’s purpose.
Tanaka Akihiko, JICA president, disclosed the decision at a press briefing on Thursday.
The move comes weeks after controversy erupted when Nigeria’s State House claimed Japan would introduce “a special visa category for highly skilled, innovative, and talented young Nigerians who want to move to Kisarazu to live and work.”
The statement, signed by Abiodun Oladunjoye, director of information at the State House, was quickly denied by Japanese authorities.
On August 26, Japan clarified that it had no plan to create such a visa category, stressing that the initiative was never intended to promote immigration.
Explaining its decision to cancel the programme, JICA said the use of the word “hometown” and the idea of “designating” Japanese municipalities sparked confusion within the country.
“Originally, under this initiative, it was envisioned that exchange programs would be coordinated and implemented among the Japanese local governments, relevant African countries, and JICA. The specific details were to be determined later,” the agency said in a statement.
“However, JICA believes that the very nature of this initiative—namely, the term ‘hometown’ and the fact that JICA would ‘designate’ Japanese local Governments as ‘hometowns’—led to misunderstandings and confusion within Japan, placing an excessive burden on the four municipalities. JICA sincerely apologizes to the municipalities involved for causing such situation.
“JICA takes this situation seriously. After consulting with all parties involved, JICA has decided to withdraw the ‘JICA Africa Hometown’ initiative.”
Launched in August during the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9), the programme was designed to foster cultural and educational exchanges between four Japanese cities and four African countries.
However, JICA stressed it has “never undertaken initiatives to promote immigration and has no plans to do so in the future,” while pledging to continue supporting other forms of international exchange.
The controversy deepened after Nigeria’s chargé d’affaires in Japan, Florence Akinyemi Adeseke, and Kisarazu’s mayor, Yoshikuni Watanabe, publicly received a certificate naming the city the “hometown” of Nigerians—an event that further fuelled reports of migration opportunities.
Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs later clarified that the initiative was solely about cultural and developmental partnerships, not visas or relocation benefits.
