Japan Supports Education for Peace in Colombia

Japan is committed to peace education in Colombia. The Japanese government, through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), will provide support to the Ministry of Education to continue the peace education training for teachers in different regions of the country.

The purpose is to establish a third cohort with teachers who are in the complementary cycles of the teacher training colleges of twelve certified territorial entities: Cucuta, Norte de Santander, Nariño, Pasto, Cauca, Popayan, Bolivar, Cartagena, Cesar, Valledupar, Antioquia and Medellin, as well as with officials of the Ministry of Education, to learn about the experience of Okinawa (Japan).

Study the Japanese model

They will be trained in the Course for Strengthening the Teacher Training System in Peace Education where they will learn about the Japanese education system and its approach to peace education, and experience firsthand the history and lessons derived from the Battle of Okinawa.

This program allowed two groups of teachers and Ministry of Education officials to learn about the Japanese experience, which in 2019 began with a first group of 10 participants trained in Okinawa. In 2022, 14 teachers took the program virtually and in 2023 they had the opportunity to travel to this Japanese region.

“For JICA it is very important to support the Colombian government….. in the construction of a society with greater tolerance and the ability to coexist. We also recognize the high capacity of Colombian teachers to have a positive impact on the construction of a stronger social fabric,” said Hiroshi Sato, representative of the Japan International Cooperation Agency for Colombia.

Five years after the implementation of this alliance between the Colombian Ministry of Education and JICA, the presentation of the Program Alumni Results Report took place, where an evaluation was made to recognize the progress, challenges and opportunities of today’s participants, in order to implement peace education proposals in the country.

Peace Education Meetings

Likewise, the work carried out by the Ministry of Education was presented, such as the holding of national and regional Peace Education Meetings; the Meeting of Former Scholarship Holders in Montes de María in November 2023; as well as the incorporation of peace education through Comprehensive Training and CRESE Education (citizenship, reconciliation and peace, socioemotional, anti-racism and climate change) in the National Development Plan 2022-2026. On the other hand, the need to strengthen networks, roundtables and peace education seedbeds was highlighted.

JICA also presented the recent magazine Nuevo Amanecer (New Sunrise), which compiles several articles and essays on the experiences and good practices of former scholarship holders in different areas of knowledge, thanks to the learning and experiences they acquired in Japan.

Finally, in order to continue promoting peace education, a series of three transmissions called ‘Let’s talk about peace, let’s make peace’ has been carried out so far; at the end of the month, a fourth meeting in the Ministry of Education will be shown on YouTube Live.