The 2008 Sino-Japanese Talent Exchange Seminar was held Thursday in Changchun, capital of northeastern China's Jilin Province. At this seminar, government officials of Jilin Province, Japanese government officials, experts from Jilin University, leaders of personnel exchange organizations, and many Japanese enterprises stressed the idea of talent exchange.
A decreasing birth rate is resulting in a huge labor shortage in Japan. Therefore, Japanese enterprises, especially small and medium-sized ones, are introducing foreign labor by way of the trainee project.
As far as China is concerned, the country is now facing the pressure of employment. The trainee exchange project can both satisfy the labor need for Japan and provide opportunities for learning and training for some Chinese citizens.
Marui Agricultural Cooperative, a Kagoshima-ken-based enterprise, specializes in the production and sale of processed foods from chicken and eggs. Kagoshima-ken is located in the south of Kyushu, Japan's grain base. Marui Agricultural Cooperative has hosted ten Chinese trainees every year since 2002.
Marui President Tomooki Takamatsu affirms the positive effect of the trainee exchange project, "I think it is an indispensable system for future communication between China and Japan."
There are only two requirements to apply: a junior middle school certificate and at least six months of Japanese language training.
Wang Xiaoli is from Meihekou, a city in Jilin Province. She went to Japan in August, 2005, and has just returned home. She thinks that she made a right decision three years ago. "My parents work very hard in the countryside, and I really hope that they can have a better life. I too want a better future."
Wang Xiaoli has mastered advanced agricultural skills, including planting tomatoes, strawberries, and rice. For the past three years, she has received a monthly salary of 70,000 Japanese yen (US$655.06).
Language skills are also an asset for the Chinese trainees. Jiang Mingxin, also from Meihekou, has mastered the skill of cow-breeding. After three years in Japan, he can now speak fluent Japanese. "I would like to engage in the Japanese language if it is possible."
Sun Tieqi is the president of Northeast Asia International Exchange Center, which began the Sino-Japanese personnel exchange in the 1990s. "Now, the problem with the personnel exchange is that we send many more people to Japan than Japan does to China. This will be the focus of our future work."
Personnel exchange between China and Japan has been expanded since the normalization of Sino-Japanese relations. There are five primary means of personnel exchange: overseas student exchange; talented employee exchange among multinational enterprises; talented people exchange between colleges and enterprises; government or non-government organization (NGO) missions; trainee exchange.
"Trainees" here are ordinary workers who lack skills. Currently, most trainees come from China and go to Japan for further training. The contract for Chinese trainees in Japan usually lasts from one to three years, during which time the trainees learn about the agriculture, construction, textile, processing or service industries.
