The Truth of NICOCIA PROJECT in CEBU ニコシアの真実 濱保泰介著

This booklet is a publication authored by the founder, Taisuke Hamayasu, on the above-mentioned themes and philosophies.The English translation of this page is below.

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NICOCIA is a Beacon of Hope for the Future

NICOCIA is a non-profit, public-interest international exchange NPO.
An NPO is a system where people come together to help each other for the sake of happiness, rather than for profit.

■Membership Responsibilities and Operational Costs of NICOCIA
Foreign members receive assistance in the form of waived fees for six months of tuition, dormitory expenses, and meals. Japanese members, in addition to the membership fee of the NPO, bear the actual expenses for transportation, accommodation, meals, and other costs related to exchange.
NICOCIA's operational costs (including tuition, dormitory expenses, meals for foreign members, facility maintenance costs, and personnel dispatch expenses) cannot be covered solely by membership fees, so they are sourced from a new financial system.

■Non-profit principles of NPO and mutual assistance among members
This involves a system where the operational expenses already incurred for the education of foreign members who have married Japanese members are left as contributions for future individuals following in their footsteps. These contributions are then utilized for operational expenses to educate new members. Goodwill is passed from one person to another. This approach is unique to NPOs, where people work for the happiness of others without seeking personal profit. It is the best method to avoid the mistakes made by both the public and private sectors.

■The NICOCIA approach is effective in Asia
The NICOCIA approach is effective for projects that aim to foster communication between Japanese individuals and economically disadvantaged foreigners. Typically, we pay for services after specifying the desired service, and then the corresponding service is provided. However, for foreigners who cannot afford tuition fees due to financial constraints, this sequence is not feasible. Moreover, lending money for an amount they cannot repay with their income raises human rights concerns. The NICOCIA approach breaks this futile cycle.

■NICOCIA sets a new model for NPOs
Poverty and the level of culture are unrelated. NICOCIA promotes talent development widely from Asia based on this philosophy. Acquiring Japanese language communication skills is a prerequisite for international exchange and international marriages. Conversely, bride matchmaking where language learning occurs after marriage naturally carries a high risk of failure. Therefore, education is initially provided to individuals free of charge. Subsequently, those who benefit from this education (usually the individuals themselves, but in this case, Japanese individuals) contribute a certain amount towards the costs. This is the NPO business model of "preliminary education and retrospective burden" unique to NICOCIA.

■New community services will emerge
It is anticipated that NICOCIA, with its established foundation, will give rise to services such as providing accurate marriage information and coordinating marriages. International intermediary services that contribute to the community will also emerge. NICOCIA will become a brand of a new social system that generates communities through communication.