NAPIA

VOL.65

Dec.2023

NAPIA English Edition - Vol. 65
Established May 2009

NAPIA is a newsletter issued by Nagasaki International Association for foreign residents.
Edited by: Nagasaki International Association

The 15th ~Let’s Talk in Nagasaki~ Japanese Speech Contest for Foreigners was held!
On (Saturday) 14th October 2023, “The 15th ~Let’s Talk in Nagasaki~
Japanese Speech Contest for Foreigners” was held at the Nagasaki
National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims. Elevenforeigners living in Nagasaki Prefecture from four different countries
entered the contest. The contestants gave speeches on a variety of
topics such as Nagasaki dialect that they came across while working parttime jobs, the little joys they experienced living in Japan, and their wishes
for world peace.
Audience members made the following comments about the speech
contest:“I realized that language is an even greater barrier for foreigners After the speech contest, with the contestants
than Japanese people imagine. I want more Japanese people to hear
about it.” “I was impressed these young foreigners experienced various
things with great sensitivity even while going through great hardships. I
You can watch thelook forward to next year’s speech contest as well!”winner’s speech here!
Thank you to all the contestants who put in a lot of effort and presented
us with wonderful and memorable speeches.

The 25th Nagasaki International Festival was held!
On (Sunday) 29th October 2023, “The 25th Nagasaki International Festival” was held at the Nagasaki Prefectural
Government Office for the first time in four years! On the day, about 2,300 people attended the event. A total of 31
organizations associated with international exchange/co-operation participated, including supervising organizations(union associations) which participated for the first time this year. Participating organizations exhibited their organization’s
activities, sold overseas handmade goods, provided kimono/tea ceremony experiences, provided Vietnamese “statue”
painting experiences, and sold international cuisine lunches. Thank you to everyone who participated in and attended
the festival!

Exchange with
the Nagasaki Indonesia Community

Kimono and Tea Ceremony Experience Vietnamese “Statue” Painting ExperienceIntroducing an Organization that is Active in International Exchange and Cooperation within Nagasaki Prefecture－Friendship International Sasebo－
In Nagasaki Prefecture, there are many organizations that are active in international exchange/cooperation. Thistime, Mr. Yoshiaki Kikuchi, a representative of Friendship International Sasebo, shared with us about the activities
of his organization, which celebrated its 25th anniversary this year.
Friendship International Sasebo (FIS) was established in 1998 byenthusiastic volunteers in response to the demands of the times. Since then,we have been conducting volunteer Japanese language support activities forforeigners living in the suburbs of Sasebo City. Currently, we are running fourJapanese classes a week at two locations within Sasebo City, which areattended by 30 foreigners from 11 different countries. Participants include
technical intern trainees, international students, ALTs, foreigners who moved
to Sasebo due to an international marriage, elementary/junior high/seniorhigh school students attending a Japanese school, as well as foreigners
living in faraway locations such as Saikai City, Matsuura City and HasamiJapanese language classcho, who willingly travel a long way to attend the lessons. Although it has
been 15 years since I retired and began my activities with this organization,
I have been serving as the organization’s representative since the year
before last.
There are 30 people who registered as volunteers for the Japanese language support lessons, and most of thesepeople are housewives. The unique feature of FIS is the one-on-one lesson format between the teacher and thestudent. Teaching while being close to the student allows for the mutual deepening of trust and allows the teacher todevelop a sense of responsibility. There may be some classes without enough volunteers, however, we makeadjustments between the classes to try and provide one-on-one instruction as much possible. There are somevolunteers who teach 2 to 3 times a week. The dedication and efforts of all the volunteers has been the driving force
behind the continued operation of FIS to this day.
What all students have in common is a strong desire to experience various aspects of Japanese culture. Therefore,
at FIS, we place emphasis not only on Japanese language support, but also on exchange events, by proactively
holding events and disseminating information about local events. Although we temporarily reduced our activities during
the COVID-19 pandemic, we are now returning to the normal format we had four years ago. We had a trip departingon a local train to view the cherry blossoms, and for the international cuisine cooking class that we held in September,
we had 25 people participate. In October we held a Halloween party and in December we will hold a Christmas party
for the first time in four years. We will also hold the popular “trying on a kimono” from time to time.
With the revision of the technical intern training program and specified skilled worker, it is expected that it will
become easier to accept people from foreign countries. We will work hard to create a symbiotic society so that
foreigners can eliminate their “language anxiety” and live without worries.

Matsuura Railway toCherry Blossom Viewing

International Cuisine Cooking Class◆Friendship International Sasebo
Address: 2-200-26 Tenjin, Sasebo City 857-1174
TEL (secretariat): 080-6293-7955 E-mail: fis_sasebo@space.ocn.ne.jp

Bowling TournamentAbout Medical Insurance in JapanAll residents in Japan are covered by public medical insurance, regardless of their nationality. It is a system where allmembers contribute money to help pay for necessary medical treatment. By showing your health insurance card to
the reception desk of the hospital, you only have to pay a portion of your medical bill and so you can receive medical
treatment with ease of mind. There are three types of medical insurances, and you will be covered by one of them.

① Health Insurance■Who is covered by it?
Those who meet the criteria suchas working at least 20 hours aweek and earning a salary of atleast 88,000 yen a month will becovered by their company’s healthinsurance. Those covered by thistype of insurance can also havetheir family members living inJapan covered as well. Pleasecheck with your company whether
you or your family members living
in Japan are eligible to join.
■How do you join?
Applications are made throughyour company. Your company will
pay for half of the monthly healthinsurance fees.

② National Health Insurance■Who is covered by it?
Those who are not covered byHealth Insurance through theirworkplace, are under 75 years old
and have been living in Japan for
longer than 3 months are eligible tojoin. However, those with special
residency status such as the“designated activities” visa for
medical stay are not eligible.
■How do you join?
Applications are made at your local
city office. You will no longer becovered by National Health
Insurance once you start working
and join Health Insurance throughyour company, or if you move to adifferent town or city to the one you
are currently living in. Make sure tocontact your local city office.
Monthly fees vary depending on
the number of family members andincome.

③ Medical Care System for the
Elderly■Who is covered by it?
Foreigners who are 75 years or overand have lived in Japan for more than
3 months (those with a special
residence status are not eligible tojoin)■How do you join?
Applications are to be made throughyour local city office (some city offices
do not require for applications to bemade). For those who had Health
Insurance, this will finish. The
premiums you pay will varydepending on your income.
You can read "Guidebook
on Living and Working",
which is written in
multiple languages, on
the Immigration Services
Agency website. You canaccess it from the QR
code on the right!

<Reference> Guidebook for Living and Working～For Foreigners Living in Japan～(Immigration Bureau of Japan)

What Kind of Consultation Center is the “Nagasaki Prefecture Consultation Centre for Foreign People”?
We provide consultation services in 22 languages so that foreigners living in Nagasaki Prefecture can live
comfortably and safely. You can consult with us by phone, email, or in person about any problems regarding
residence status, work, medical care, welfare, lifestyle, etc. Consultations are free of charge.

Consultation methods
・Consultation in person: Within the Nagasaki International Association (Dejima Koryu Kaikan 1st Floor, 2-11,
Dejima-machi, Nagasaki City)
・Consultation by phone: 095-820-3377
・Consultation be E-mail: soudan@nia.or.jp

Consultation hours Monday to Saturday (9:00am to 5:00pm)*Closed on Sundays, public holidays, and from December 29th to January 3rdExpert consultation session for foreign people
You can have a free consultation with an administrative scrivener about matters related to residence status, legal
matters, work, etc. If you would like a consultation, please make a reservation.
・When: The 4th Saturday of every month (1:30pm to 4:30pm)(This schedule is subject to change, so please check our website or Facebook page for any updates.)
・Where: Nagasaki Prefecture Consultation Center for Foreign People (Dejima Koryu Kaikan 1st Floor, 2-11, Dejimamachi, Nagasaki City)
・TEL: 095-820-3377

Event Announcement“Calendar Market 2024 ~International Cooperation That You Can Do Too~”(Organizer: International Students NGO BOAT, Nagasaki University)

At Calendar Market, we will be selling calendars and notebooks donated by companies, starting at 100 yen. Allproceeds will be donated to Philippine NGOs “Development Action for Women Network” and “Chilhope Philippines
Foundation”. Entry is free so anyone is free to come! We look forward to seeing you there!
● When: 10am to 4pm (Sunday) 7th January 2024
● Where: 2F Hall, Nagasaki Prefectural Art Museum (2-1 Dejima-machi, Nagasaki City)● Contact: International Students NGO BOAT, Nagasaki University (E-mail: boat.kannbu@gmail.com）“Nagasaki Multicultural Festival” (Organizer: International Affairs Division, Nagasaki City Hall)
We will hold an international exchange event where you can casually enjoy experiencing foreign cultures. In addition
to stage events featuring performances of various musical instruments and folk music, there will also be plenty ofbooths where you can experience the culture of various countries such as through introduction of the activities ofinternational exchange organizations active within Nagasaki City and trying on traditional clothing of foreign countries.
There will also be the mask changing show. Please come and join the fun!
※ There won’t be any “champon” at the festival● When: 12:30pm to 4:00pm (Saturday) 20th January 2024
● Where: 3F Nagasaki Brick Hall (2-38 Mori-machi, Nagasaki City)● Contact: International Affairs Division, Nagasaki City Hall (TEL: 095-829-1113)“Gallery Talk for Foreigners” (Organizer: the Nagasaki Museum of History and Culture)
Staff members will provide explanations about each theme while guiding guests through each room. There are daysfor explanations in “easy Japanese”, and days for explanations in English. Bookings are essential.
≪Theme≫ Nagasaki and China: During the Edo Period (about 460 years ago), Nagasaki had exchanges with
China. We will introduce items which were introduced to Nagasaki from China, and items from Nagasaki that wereintroduced to China.
● Easy Japanese: 1:30pm to 2:30pm (Sunday) 21st January 2024

Make a reservation here!

● English: 2:30pm to 3:30pm (Sunday) 21st January 2024
≪Location≫ Nagasaki Museum of History and Culture (1-1-1 Tateyama Nagasaki City)≪Who can attend≫ Foreigners living in Nagasaki Prefecture, people with a foreign background≪Capacity≫ Up to 15 people each day (first 15 people to make a booking)≪Admission Fee≫ Those attending this event must pay the admission fee*Adults 500 yen / Senior high school students 250 yen / International students, elementary school students andjunior high school students living in Nagasaki Prefecture have free admission*International students must show their student identification card.
≪Other≫ Japanese citizens accompanying foreigners residing in Nagasaki Prefecture are also welcome to attend.
Please use the QR code above to make a booking.
≪Contact≫ Nagasaki Museum of History and Culture Attention: Ms. Sueyoshi（TEL：095-818-8389）

Nagasaki International Association
2-11 Dejima-machi Nagasaki City
E-mail：nia@nia.or.jp

TEL：095-823-3931

Website：https://www.nia.or.jp/

Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/nia.nagasaki/

Website

FAX：095-822-1551

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