PH Foreign Affairs Secretary Asks for Better Terms for the Deployment of Filipino Nurses to Japan

During a bilateral meeting between the Philippines and Japan on April 9 in Tokyo, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. urged the Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Hayashi Yoshimasa to offer better terms for Filipinos in Japan. “The movement of Filipino health and medical professionals is crucial,” explained Locsin.

The deployment of Filipino nurses to Japan was enabled following the signing of the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA) in 2006. However, only around 2,000 Filipino nurses and caregivers have since attempted to work in Japan, many of whom returned to the country shortly after due to the extensive requirements necessary before being employed.

Professionals who were deployed to Japan needed to accomplish and pass Japan’s National Board Examination (JNBE) before being able to work. As part of the JNBE, nurses are required to study again as well as learn the Nihongo language. Locsin noted that Tokyo “could make it more conducive for more Filipino workers to work in the Japanese health system.”

Philippine licensure examinations are not recognized by the Japanese government as well as Japan’s nursing association. Instead, professionals who are deployed to Japan are assigned as “trainers,” who only do noninvasive work, prior to their passing of the JNBE. This policy proved to be a disaster for Japan, especially at the onset of the global pandemic, as it experienced a shortage of nurses.

Nonetheless, Hayashi and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida both expressed that Philippines-Japan relations have entered a “golden age” as it remains the top Official Development Assistance (ODA) provider in the country. This was likewise echoed by Locsin, affirming that Japan’s assistance has been “essential” to the country’s development roadmap. 

Since 2017, under the Duterte Administration, Japan committed to the completion of infrastructure projects worth around $7.962 billion in less than five years as part of the infrastructure cooperation between both countries. During the first 9 months of 2021, Japan was also reported as the Philippines’ second-largest trading partner, third-largest export market, and second-largest source of imports.

On the other hand, Foreign Minister Hayashi also called on Locsin to support second-generation children of Japanese descent — regarded as “Nikkejins” — most of whom are living in Mindanao, in being granted Japanese citizenship. “Secretary Locsin conveyed support for the endeavor and shared that the Philippines was the first country in Asia to become a State Party to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, demonstrating Philippines’ full commitment to reducing and eliminating statelessness.” explained the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Source: BusinessMirror