Japan will receive its first two foreign trainees in the field of nursing care as early as next month after a supervising body approved training plans for them, the group accepting the two Chinese women said Wednesday.
Their planned arrival comes after a law took effect in November that includes nursing care in the list of fields in which foreign trainees can work under a government program.
The Organization for Technical Intern Training approved the plans for the two trainees on May 1.
There were 102 similar applications as of April 20, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said.
The two women, both in their 40s and with caregiving experience in the city of Dalian, will work at welfare facilities in Miyazaki Prefecture for five years, the maximum training period allowed under the program.
Shinsuke Ono, head of the company operating the facilities, said he hopes the program will help increase human resources as his firm looks to start a business in China.
Japan introduced the training program for foreign people in 1993 with the aim of transferring skills to developing countries. But the program has faced criticism at home and abroad as a cover for importing cheap labor.