With the latest Japan Foundation survey showing over 8,000 organizations here at least nominally involved in "international exchange," the government is hoping to spare its own coffers by shifting the burden of assisting Japan's foreign population onto NPO groups.
However, complex regulations that hamper day-to-day operations, meager government funding there is, and the organizations' own threadbare resources have left many groups that seek to assist foreigners themselves facing an uncertain future.
The face of "international exchange" has changed considerably in recent years.