The Nippon Foundation Fund for Japanese Language Education Program (NF-JLEP) promotes the study and teaching of the Japanese language in countries abroad. It was launched in 1994, when endowments of 1.5 million US dollars each were donated by The Nippon Foundation to eight universities in six countries. Because two endowments are shared by two or more universities, there are 11 “NF-JELP universities.” Each endowed university develops programs that most effectively promote Japanese-language education in its locality, such as by providing fellowships to undergraduate and graduate students pursuing Japanese-related studies, training Japanese-language teachers, and developing teaching materials. To date, approximately 2,000 NF-JLEP fellows have benefitted from NF-JLEP support, and many of them are playing key roles in Japanese-language education in each country.

In 2017, the NF-JLEP Association was launched to bring closer together all stakeholders in the NF-JLEP community: fellows, management committee members, and the staff of The Nippon Foundation (endowment donor) and the Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research (NF-JLEP Association secretariat). One aim of the NF-JLEP Association is to increase interest in and understanding of Japan and to promote cross-border networking among members. To this end, the Association secretariat operates support programs, currently offering students and educators opportunities to conduct Japanese-language research in Japan. We hope all members will maximize their engagement with the NF-JLEP Association so it can make a positive impact on Japanese-language education around the world.