Due to the 2008-2009 economic crisis, a large number of migrant children in Japan were forced out of school as their parents lost their jobs and could no longer afford to pay private school tuition. The project will provide funding to operate bridging schools for migrant children, to enable them to study the Japanese language and other subjects. The objective is to encourage their smooth transfer to the Japanese public schools system, which is tuition free. The bridging schools are also expected to help promote their smooth integration within the local community. The total project duration will be 3 years; the project should end in March 2012.
The program directly tackles the issues of integration of migrant children and of their education - one of the core challenges faced by migrant families. This theme has repeatedly been discussed within the framework of the GFMD, particularly in the GFMD 2009 Round Table 2.1, “Inclusion, protection and acceptance of migrants in society- linking human rights and migrant empowerment for development.”