Oluwaseyi Ajayi, a student of Economics department, University of Abuja, studied the Japanese language only for a year and a couple of months, but has just won the Effort Award in the World Essay Competition for learners of the language.
The international competition which closed in December 2021 was open to all non-Japanese, professional Japanese translators, interpreters, Japanese language teachers, researchers, and embassy staff in Japan, and some university students studying Japanese for about 20 hours a week.
Oluwaseyi’s teacher who is also the acting director of the Japanese Language and Cultural Institute (JLCI), University of Abuja, Mr Mitsuaki Morita, says the student’s fourth position in the international competition that attracted 3,962 entries from 48 countries was “a miracle,” especially given that she had studied Japanese only for two hours a week over one year and some months.
“This is the next prize after the first, second, and third prizes. But it is still a great achievement,” Morita notes, adding that he’s sure the student would perform better if she continues to study the language with the same level of determination.
According to Oluwaseyi, she developed fast on the language which she began to study out of curiosity to learn a foreign language. “The language itself sounds beautiful to me, and learning about a culture so different from mine has been the most intriguing part,” she states.
The award, she affirms, will serve as a constant reminder to her that anyone can achieve anything as long as they put their mind on it and make necessary effort, assuring herself that she will excel in the language and visit Japan one day.
“I must never forget to say that I have been encouraged to study this language by the Vice-chancellor, Professor Abdul-Rasheed Na’Allah, who introduced foreign language as a course in the University and Mr Mitsuaki Morita, who taught and helped me in the study of the language,” she says.
Morita is hopeful that Oluwaseyi will become “a bridge between Nigeria and Japan in the future.”
In June 2022, Oluwaseyi delivered a four-minute speech in Japanese during the First Chair of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which held at the University of Abuja, receiving commendation from the Japanese Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Kazuyoshi Matsunaga.
” I am excited and impressed that this student, Oluwaseyi, has made such an excellent presentation, even though it is not too long that she started studying Japanese,” Matsunaga said after the presentation.
