Japanese couple prepares poor moms for employment

DAGUPAN CITY—Every 12:30 p.m. thrice weekly, Masaru Okumoto and his wife, Shizuko, take a 10-minute boat ride to Pugaro, a poor community in this city.

Their mission: To teach 15 unemployed mothers how to sew so they can find jobs or be self-employed after the yearlong training.

When they reach the village, their students, some of whom have children in tow and clutching sewing kits and pieces of cloth, are already in the appointed place. In one recent afternoon, the class was held outside the barangay hall.

The Okumotos, both retirees, are among the volunteers of the Nippon Skilled Volunteers Association (Nisva), a nongovernment, nonprofit Japanese organization which recruits elderly Japanese willing to work as volunteers in Southeast Asian countries.

The volunteers aim to contribute their practical knowledge and skills in supporting the host countries’ economic and social development. They also promote mutual understanding and goodwill between the host countries and Japan.

Shizuko, 66, says she decided to become a volunteer after watching a television program that featured a jobless mother abandoned by her husband. She could not find a job because she lacked education and training.

“I want to help women in similar circumstances,” says Shizuko, who worked in a garments factory in Japan.

The trainees have welcomed the Okumotos’ help.

“This gives us a chance to learn and use the skills so we can earn,” says Cristina Caguioa, 26, a mother of three.

“[They are] patient and repeat instructions if we do not understand them,” Jovy Idos, 29, says.

Peruvian Gabriel Alfaro, also a Nisva volunteer, acts as interpreter to help breach the language barrier between the Japanese teachers and their Filipino trainees.

Shinji Ukumura, Nisva Philippines bureau chief, says the volunteers are between 50 to and 70 years old and are retired skilled workers who want to make a difference.

“Around 300 volunteers are waiting to be assigned where there is a need for their skills. We are hoping to partner with nongovernment agencies in the Philippines for their assignments,” Ukumura says.

Aside from the Okumotos, eight other volunteers help poor communities in Pangasinan. They are Fuse Kazuaki, 68, and couple Tomohide, 56, and Mihoko Kubo, 52, who teach heavy machinery operation; couple Takashi, 69, and Koko Agatuma, 68, who teach sewing, management and marketing; Yoshio Suzuki, 64, who teaches welding; and Hatano Hitoshi, 58, a Nihongo teacher. Shoji Harada, 69, works as a volunteer at the Nisva office in the province.