For the past 15 years, the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program has greatly helped promote Japan's internationalization.
The JET program, under which young foreign college graduates are recruited to work as teachers and exchange coordinators in Japan, was jointly launched in 1987 by the Foreign Ministry, the then education and home affairs ministries, and the Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR). The program is intended to support foreign-language education at junior high and high schools across the nation, as well as to promote international awareness at the community level. It also aims to increase foreigners' understanding of Japanese society.
Since its inception, the program has grown in terms of both the number of participants and represented nations. A total of 6,190 people from 39 countries took part in the program last year. The JET program's inaugural year featured the participation of a total of just 848 people from the United States, Britain, Australia and New Zealand.