The Japan “Hometown” Hoax

 By Ochereome Nnanna

One of the fallouts of President Bola Tinubu’s recent trip to Japan was the news that Japan had created a “hometown” for Nigerians in Kisarazu, a suburb of Tokyo. The impression it gave was that Japan would issue special visas (perhaps something like the American Visa Lottery), to enable willing Nigerians migrate to Japan, settle and work.

When I made a social media post asking Nigerians if they would like to “japa to Japan”, a good number of young people seemed excited about the “opportunity” and sought more information. The Japanese Foreign Ministry has since clarified the issue, but in a manner that poured ice water on the enthusiastic expectations of those seeking to become Japanese overnight.

In an official statement, the Japanese government made it clear that it had no intention of creating a special visa to absorb migrants from anywhere. The “Hometown” initiative is a product of the Japan International Cooperation Agency, JICA, aimed at fostering “cultural, technical and developmental cooperation” between Japan and African countries. The programme was unveiled during the recently-concluded 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development, TICAD 9, which President Tinubu attended.

“Under this programme, four cities in Japan are designated as ‘home towns’ for four African countries. Under this programme, JICA plans to promote exchanges between the four Japanese cities and the four African countries through various activities, including the organisation of exchange events involving JICA overseas cooperation volunteers”, the statement clarified. Kisarazu, which is 46 kilometres to Japan, was “allocated” to Nigeria; Tanzania got Nagai; Ghana got Sanjo, while Mozambique was attached to Imabari cities.

What I understand from the Japanese Foreign Ministry’s clarification is that these “hometowns” would be more or less like the type of commune project that the Eze Igbo in Ghana, Jude Iheanetu, had planned  to do in Ghana but abandoned due to widespread protests. Various Nigerian and African ethnic communities have such cultural enclaves in many Western countries, particularly the United States of America. But here in Africa where some cultures worship the land, such moves are viewed with extreme or violent suspicion.

The bottom line here is that the Japan “Hometowns” are not for you who are itching to run away from Nigeria for economic or other reasons. It is strictly a government affair. The finality in the tone of the clarification says it all.

Japan has very little or no reason to throw its doors open for migrants. It is a relatively smaller country compared with Nigeria. Japan has a landmass of 377, 915 square kilometres, out of which only 33 per cent is habitable. The rest is all precipitous, unapproachable mountains. It is into this small space that Japan’s 123 million indigenous people are squeezed. Why would such a country want to saddle itself with more migrants? It is true that the Japanese economy is threatened by declining indigenous youthful population. Due to sustained prosperity which enhances longevity, the population of old and retired people has risen to 35.24 million (2024) and counting.

The same disease that afflicts many Western countries has captured Japan: many Japanese no longer have children. There is a growing shortfall of indigenous youthful Japanese to work the economy and support the growing number of the elderly. Japan already has 3.76 million carefully-sifted migrants to reside and work in Japan within their overall national interest.

In any case, you may not really want to migrate to Japan if you knew ahead of time what residing there entails. Japan is a prime example of the fact that Nigeria is a place of milk and honey. For instance, there are an average of 2,000 earthquakes in Japan every year. It holds the world record in annual earthquakes. Japan, a basket of islands, is struck by at least 100 tsunamis annually. Indeed, “tsunami” is a Japanese word meaning “wave from the harbour”. For a person who was born and grew in Nigeria with virtually no serious natural disasters, Japan may prove a foreboding destination except to the toughest, most enterprising young Nigerians willing to live under a strong ethical social climate.

Despite all these, if I were still young and I get the opportunity to live and work in Japan, I will not think twice. There is a lot the youth can learn from living abroad, particularly a place like Japan with its proud history, high ethical principles, technological and industrial power. I will never advise anybody to seek to settle permanently in Japan. Achieve your purpose and come back. The people of Japan are sleeping lions and lionesses. Post-World War culture conditioned them to become “Westerners”, at least for now. Their large population and small habitable space are twin warning signals. Any time the migrant population becomes a perceived threat to the native Japanese the atmosphere will rapidly change against the migrant populations.

“No matter where you go, remember the road that will lead you back home,” as South African singer, Master KG, cautioned all foreigners. You may not like this advice, but it is the bitter medicine that cures you. This is also the worldview of the highly mobile Igbo nation. This we confirm by building our best mansions at home and getting taken home for burial, at whatever cost, when we die. 

Whatever fortune or skill you are able to pick up abroad, be willing to bring it home. There is no place like home. If you run away from your home permanently, you will never belong to the new place you have settled in, especially in a place like Japan where your black skin will stand out – against you. If you leave your home, others will make it their new home. Some armed “herdsmen” are willing to kill and burn in order to take your patrimony.

Stay around and stop them or you and your generations will have no place in the world!

*Nnanna is a commentator on public issues