A vocational training school run by a Japanese firm in northern Vietnam will receive ¥100 million in official development assistance, officials of a government-backed aid agency said.
The school was established in 2012 by Tokyo-based builder Mukai Corp. to get people ready to work in Japan, which is dealing with a labor shortage at construction sites, the officials from the Japan International Cooperation Agency said Saturday.
To deal with the shortage, Japan is looking at importing a multitude of foreign construction workers to meet growing labor demand linked to reconstruction work in Tohoku and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The legislative measures to be compiled by the end of the month.
The school trains about 240 people annually, enrolling 80 people each in its four-month programs. Students learn to read and write enough Japanese to communicate at construction sites, in classes taught by experienced Japanese instructors.
After completing the course, each trainee can work in Japan at construction sites run by Mukai and its corporate partners for a maximum of three years.