Sophia University, as the lead institution among the five universities selected for the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology’s FY2025 \u201cProject to Strengthen Universities’ Global Outreach Capabilities (Support for Establishing Inter-University Exchange with Global South Countries – Type II: African Countries),\u201d will convene a liaison meeting among the selected universities throughout the five-year project period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This liaison meeting is positioned to facilitate the following activities among the selected universities:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2460 Information sharing for horizontal expansion and dissemination of programs<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2461 Initiatives to standardize methods for surveying and measuring learning outcomes<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The meetings will be broadly convened and implemented based on the selected universities’ own proposals, including other initiatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sophia University is the only private university selected through an independent application. It was recommended to MEXT as the lead institution in recognition of its extensive experience in overseas partnerships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The first meeting of the selected universities was held on January 29, 2026. Representatives from the selected universities\u2014Hokkaido University, Akita University, Yamanashi University, and University of Tsukuba\u2014participated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During the meeting, each selected university reported on the implementation status, innovative approaches, and challenges of their programs. There was also a lively exchange of opinions on the potential for expansion to other universities and the nature of collaboration. Discussions also covered the visualization of learning outcomes and evaluation methods, including the consideration of common indicators and future directions for survey methodologies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n