Protests by native Japanese has forced the country to reverse its ‘Africa Hometown’ Initiative for Nigeria and other African nations.
August 21, 2025, the government of Japan had named the city of Kisarazu as the hometown for Nigerians willing to live and work in the country as part of its strategic efforts to deepen cultural diplomacy, promote economic growth and enhance workforce productivity.
Under this new partnership, announced on the sidelines of the 9th Tokyo International Conference for African Development, the Japanese government planned to create a special visa category for highly skilled, innovative, and talented young Nigerians who wanted to move to Kisarazu to live and work.
JICA scrapped the Japan-Africa hometown project after protests over fears of mass immigration, highlighting domestic opposition to foreign labour initiatives and the challenges of balancing international aid with public sentiment.
However, the program faced immediate backlash when a Nigerian government statement erroneously described Kisarazu as “the hometown for Nigerians willing to live and work,” suggesting the creation of a special visa category.
This misrepresentation, coupled with misleading translations and social media posts, led to public misconceptions that the initiative was a front for mass immigration.
Despite clarifications from Japanese authorities, including the Foreign Ministry and local governments, who emphasized that the program was unrelated to immigration and focused solely on cultural exchange, the protests intensified.
Demonstrations were held in Tokyo, and local officials reported receiving thousands of phone calls and emails from concerned residents.
In response to the escalating situation, JICA decided to withdraw the initiative, acknowledging that the term “hometown” had caused misunderstandings and placed undue pressure on the involved municipalities.
A formal announcement of the decision was made on September 25.
JICA President Akihiko Tanaka expressed regret over the confusion and emphasized that the agency remains committed to promoting international exchanges and cooperation. He reiterated that JICA has never undertaken initiatives to promote immigration and has no plans to do so in the future.
At the thematic events of the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 9) held this August, JICA announced the “JICA Africa Hometown” initiative. This initiative aimed at designating four municipalities in Japan as “JICA Africa Hometown” for four African countries respectively, with the goal of promoting exchanges between them through various exchange programs.
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.
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.
Meanwhile, JICA believes that promoting international exchanges including those involving Japanese local governments and countries including Africa, remains important. Following the withdrawal of the “JICA Africa Hometown” initiative, JICA intends to continue supporting efforts to promote such international exchanges.
Furthermore, JICA wishes to take this opportunity to reiterate that it has never undertaken initiatives to promote immigration and has no plans to do so in the future.
JICA remains committed to providing thorough explanations to the public regarding its activities. Regarding the foreign nationals’ entry and stay in Japan associated with JICA programs, JICA will continue to maintain its meticulous management system as before.
If you have any questions regarding this matter, please directly contact JICA, instead of contacting the relevant Japanese local Governments.
