FG retracts claim on Japan’s special visa plan for Nigerians

The Federal Government has withdrawn its earlier announcement that Japan would introduce a special visa category for highly skilled young Nigerians seeking to live and work in the Asian country.

The clarification came on Wednesday in a statement signed by Abiodun Oladunjoye, Director of Information at the State House. The statement confirmed that the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) had designated Kisarazu City as the “Hometown for Nigeria” under its new cultural exchange initiative but stressed that there was no plan for a special visa scheme.

“Correction: JICA Designates City of Kisarazu as Hometown for Nigeria,” the statement read.

According to the government, the announcement was made on the sidelines of the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9) as part of JICA’s efforts to deepen cultural ties with four African nations.

Under the programme, Kisarazu was named Nigeria’s hometown, while Nagai (Yamagata Prefecture) was paired with Tanzania, Sanjo (Niigata Prefecture) with Ghana, and Imabari (Ehime Prefecture) with Mozambique.

The JICA initiative seeks to strengthen relationships between Japanese municipalities and African countries through cultural and developmental cooperation.

Receiving the certificate on behalf of Nigeria, the country’s Charge d’Affaires and Acting Ambassador to Japan, Mrs. Florence Akinyemi Adeseke, joined Watanabe Yoshikuni, Mayor of Kisarazu, at the ceremony.

Kisarazu previously served as the official host town for the Nigerian contingent during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, providing pre-games training and acclimatisation facilities for Team Nigeria.

Earlier claim sparks diplomatic clarification

Last Friday, the Nigerian government issued a statement claiming that Japan would introduce a special visa category to allow highly skilled, innovative, and talented young Nigerians to settle and work in Kisarazu under the new partnership.

However, Japan swiftly denied the report on Tuesday, clarifying that no such visa programme was discussed or approved at TICAD9. The Japanese authorities also requested Nigeria to retract its earlier statement.

The Federal Government has now corrected the record, confirming that the initiative is strictly cultural and developmental, with no immigration or visa policy attached.