Duo off to Japan on exchange programme

TWO Papua New Guineans on Dec 5 left for Japan to participate in the Japan-East Asia Network of Exchange for Students and Youth (JENESYS) programme.
Atowaso Sagata and Siliwen Namora were part of 460 youths and students from across the Pacific participating in the programme.
Sagata and Namora, both undergraduates at the University of Papua New Guinea, were selected for the cultural exchange programme based on their academic records and the extra-curricular activities.
The JENESYS programme is coordinated by the University of the South Pacific, and was aimed at strengthening ties and relationships between Japan and Pacific Island youths and students.
The “peace-building” programme would run for a week at Fukushima.
For Sagata and Namora, it would be special, visiting Japan’s historical sites and infrastructures, tastes new foods and learn and experience the traditional culture of Japan.
Namora said he wanted to know more about the Japanese culture, and how they had preserved their traditions and culture over the years and had incorporated them into the modern era.
Sagata, on the other hand, said she had always been fascinated by Fukushima and its people; how they had risen from the disaster and tragedy of the 2011 earthquake to rebuild and advance in their lives.
“I am keen to visit the Fukushima prefecture and see how the Japanese have rebuilt their lives after that hazardous disaster and report about it.”