University Instructors of Teacher Education from 12 African Countries on an 11-day Study Tour of Japan Attend the Peace Memorial Ceremony in Hiroshima

On 6 August 2019, African university instructors of teacher education from 12 African countries joined the Peace Memorial Ceremony at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima, Japan. The ceremony, held annual on 6th August, commemorates the victims of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. 

The university instructors are in Japan on an 11-day study tour of the country to learn about peacebuilding and the prevention of violent extremism. They are joined by representatives from the IICBA, UNESCO Regional Office for Eastern Africa, UNESCO Dakar, UN Environment in Ethiopia, the Organization Internationale de la Francophonie, the UNICEF Liaison Office to the African Union (AU) and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), and Timbuktu Institute in Senegal.

Japan made incredible social and economic progress after World War II and serves as a great example of the importance of maintaining peace. The country’s education policy and curriculum highly emphasize peacebuilding. Through the Study Tour, participants have the opportunity to learn about Japan’s historical advancements, policies, and strategies in education and peacebuilding. They will meet with Members of Parliament and visit the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where they will share their experiences from their home country, achievements of the project, and what they’ve learned while in Japan.

The tour is co-organized by IICBA and the Center for the Study of International Cooperation in Education at Hiroshima University, with support from the Government of Japan, and is a part of the "Youth Empowerment for Peace and Resilience Building and Prevention of Violent Extremism in African Countries through Teacher Development" project.

The project targets teachers in 16 countries in Africa, namely Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Somalia, South Sudan, Uganda and their cross-border areas. UNECA, African Union Commission's Human Resources and Science and Technology Department and Peace and Security Department along with the UNICEF Liaison Office to the AU and UNECA are strategic partners in the project.

This is the third year that the Government of Japan has provided support for peace and resilience building and the prevention of violent extremism through teacher development in African countries. The first project was implemented in the Horn of Africa in 2017 and in the Sahel and surrounding region in 2018. More than 6,500 African teacher educators and teachers have been trained on transformative pedagogy for peacebuilding. This year’s project will focus on sharing and scaling up good practices in the target countries.

This is but one example of Japan and Africa relations. In a few short weeks, on 28 to 30 August 2019, the seventh Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), Japan’s largest international conference, will be held in Yokohama under the theme “Africa and Yokohama, Sharing Passion for the Future.”