The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Kyushu has invited eight engineers and government officials from six countries, including Egypt and Malaysia, for training on the theme of decarbonization. The training is planned to run for about one month from late September.
On October 1, the group visited TOTO's Kokura Factory in Kokurakita Ward, Kitakyushu, and saw its environmentally conscious initiatives. Since January this year, the factory has been mixing hydrogen, which does not emit CO2 when burned, into city gas in the process of firing toilets, washbasins and other products. Mixing in about 20% hydrogen by volume is said to lead to an annual reduction of 140 tons of CO2.
During the tour, participants asked a series of questions about the effects on quality and product prices, and factory staff answered them. A JICA Kyushu representative said they hope participants will take what they learned back home and use it to promote hydrogen use in their own countries.
Key points
- A training program in which eight engineers and government officials from six countries spend about a month in Japan learning about decarbonization
- They visited a factory that mixes in about 20% hydrogen for firing and expects to cut CO2 by 140 tons a year
- Participants asked a string of questions about effects on quality and price, with an eye to introducing the technology at home
Why this news deserves attention
Climate action is an indispensable challenge for every country. Training in which engineers and officials from developing countries see and learn from real initiatives at sites in Japan is an important form of international cooperation, sharing knowledge and experience across borders.
The participants' concrete questions about quality and cost show how seriously they are thinking about how to apply this in their own countries. We hope that the accumulation of this kind of training, in which people "learn on site and take it home," will support decarbonization efforts in each country.
Editor's comment
The scene of questions coming one after another during the factory tour, such as whether quality would change and whether products would become more expensive, showed how serious the participants are. To spread a new technology in your own country, it seems important to look beyond the environmental benefits to the practical challenges as well.
JICA's domestic centers host trainees from overseas like this in many parts of Japan. Why not look up what kinds of training are being held at the JICA center near you?