Japanese Foundation Provides Food to Self-Funded Int'l Students Affected by COVID-19

There has been an increase in the number of Japanese organizations which have taken the initiative to provide international students in need with food amid the Coronavirus pandemic, asserting that this kind of assistance could help them more than any financial support.

“I felt like I got a Christmas present,” a student said after receiving the assistance.

Due to the pandemic and delays in money transfers from their parents in their home countries, many students who are mainly self-funded have been experiencing financial difficulties, Erudera reports.

According to Fukuoka International Exchange Foundation in the southwestern Japan prefecture of Fukuoka, many of them are even unable to work part-time jobs due to the virus spread.

During August, the foundation started with its program on sending rice and instant food to a total of 100 self-funded international students a month, using partially the donations from local governments and companies.

As there has been an increase in the number of supporters for the foundation, the latter has managed to assist up to 400 students with food only in November.

Similar to Japan, other countries across the world are also trying to help international students who have been stuck in the country amid Coronavirus and have been financially affected by the crisis.

A foodbank pop-up store in Melbourne, Australia, a service launched by Foodbank Australia has exclusively been established in a bid to facilitate international students who have been financially hurt due to the pandemic, by offering them free food.

Despite COVID-19 developments, Japan’s Education Ministry has announced that it is planning to increase the number of international students who can pursue studies at the country’s national universities for the 2022 academic year.

With this plan, the country aims to attract more overseas students who could become an important factor in improving university research abilities, gaining recognition at the international level as well as ensuring universities’ financial stability.

According to the Statista Research Department, there have been more than 312,000 international students in the country in 2019.