In response to the educational needs of the swelling population of Japanese residents in Qatar, the Japanese Mission is reopening its school here tomorrow, after an eight-year hiatus. “The first month of operation of the school will be a trial period,” Japanese Ambassador to Qatar, Yukio Kitazume, recently told the media during a press conference, adding the formal inauguration of the school will be held in the first week of May. To be named Japan School of Doha, the institution which will be situated in West Nasiriya, will later accommodate not only Japanese children but also Qataris and other expatriates who wish to avail of Japanese education. The Japanese Embassy established a school here some 30 years ago, though it closed its doors in 2001 due to the decline in its population. Qatar has witnessed tremendous growth in the number of Japanese based here in the last five years with more Japanese companies opening, buoyed by excellent bilateral relations turning into a multi-layered partnership in a number of fields since it established its mission here more than three decades ago. “The Japanese population has increased five-fold. Back in 2004, there were only around 200 to 300 compared to the over 1, 000 currently, making Qatar the second country with the biggest population of Japanese in the Middle East,” noted the Ambassador. Among the features of the school’s curriculum is Japanese language education, though the school is contemplating offering other extra-curricular programmes. The envoy said the new school would be the basis to further intensify Japanese language education in Doha. Presently only Al Bayan Educational Complex for Girls and Language Teaching Institute benefit from a Japanese language course, so the opening of the new school would expand educational opportunity for every body. It will also motivate more Qatari students to study in Japan since the school would provide knowledge about Japan at an early stage. The Japanese Mission is opening the school to answer the need of the community with the support of the Qatari government through the Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE), who committed to provide the school building. The Emir H H Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, himself, encouraged the Japanese Mission to open the school, said the Ambassador.

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