NIHONGO SPEECH CONTEST FOR FOREIGNERS
A Nihongo Speech contest was held in Higashihiroshima City for foreign students, technical intern trainees, and other foreign residents to present their thoughts and feelings about their daily lives in Japanese.
The contest is held annually by the Higashihiroshima City Internationalization Promotion Council and other organizations to deepen international understanding, and this year’s contest, the 20th of its kind, featured speeches in Japanese by a total of 12 people from seven countries.
Among them, Sal Minakshi, a Nepalese who attends a Japanese language school, shared his experience at his part-time job. He said that although it was difficult at first because he did not fully understand Japanese, he never gave up, writing down what he did not understand and asking questions aggressively.
The first prize winner, a student from Hiroshima University, was awarded the first prize for the best student of the year. The Grand Prize winner, Liu Yiming from China, who came to Japan this September as an international student at Hiroshima University, spoke about how the main characters in Japanese novels gave him the courage to face adversity and the strength to take the first step forward, and he passionately stated, “I want to run toward my new dream of being active in Japan.
About 100 people, including concerned citizens and others, attended the event and applauded each of the speeches. A woman in her 70s who listened to the speeches said, “It is amazing that you have the energy to work hard and open up your life in a foreign country.
NHK NEWS WEB
13 November 2023
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/hiroshima-news/20231113/4000024169.html
