The Ship for Southeast Asian and Japanese Youth Program (SSEAYP)

The Ship for Southeast Asian and Japanese Youth Program (SSEAYP) is based on the respective Joint Statement issued in January 1974 between Japan and the Republic of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Republic of the Philippines, the Republic of Singapore, and the Kingdom of Thailand. Brunei Darussalam joined the Program in 1985, and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in 1996. Lao people’s Democratic Republic and the Republic of the Union of Myanmar joined the Program in 1998. Furthermore in 2000, the Kingdom of Cambodia also joined the Program. The Program is carried out by the Government of Japan (through the Office for International Youth Exchange of the Cabinet Office) with the active participation and cooperation of these ten Southeast Asian countries.

Purpose

The aims of this Program are to promote friendship and mutual understanding among the youths of Japan and the ten Southeast Asian countries, to broaden their perspective of the world, and furthermore, to strengthen their spirit of international cooperation, and practical skills for international collaboration. As a result, it is expected to cultivate youth who are capable of exercising their leadership skills in various fields in the globalizing society and to contribute to society in areas such as youth development. These aims can be achieved through sharing their lives onboard the ship, introducing each other about their countries, and participating in discussions and various exchange activities both onboard and in the countries to be visited.

Summary of the 42nd SSEAYP report in 2015

Activities in Japan

An Inauguration Ceremony (gathering all Participating Youth (PY)) and Welcome Reception were organized on October 28.

A 3-day and 2-night Regional Program was organized for all PYs (Oct.29-Nov.1) to experience local culture and homestay.

From October 31 to November 3, Japan-ASEAN Youth Leaders Summit (YLS) was held at the National Olympics Memorial Youth Center (NYC) in Tokyo. YLS is an overnight program which is implemented with the goal of achieving greater youth participation in building human networks between Japan and ASEAN member countries, as well as solidifying relationships between Japan and ASEAN member countries. Given the significance of the program, it shall be implemented with the cooperation of the embassies of respective ASEAN member countries in Tokyo and the ASEAN-Japan Centre (the ASEAN Promotion Centre on Trade, Investment and Tourism).

Cruise (Activities onboard and in the Countries Visited)

Activities onboard (Nov.5-Dec.16)

  • Discussion Program and Post-Program Session

    The Discussion Program intends to encourage the Participating Youths (PYs) to: (1)deepen their understanding of the current situation of the various fields in each country and motivate them to act for solving problems in the respective fields; (2-a) promote mutual understanding; (2-b) improve the PYs’ skills in exchanging views with other participants; and, (2-c) enhance their abilities in presenting their own ideas in public, through a free-flowing and active exchange of opinions.

    Furthermore, it aims to equip the PYs with practical knowledge and skills that are necessary to conduct post-program activities, to encourage them to develop concrete ideas for possible post-program activities and enhance their willingness to actively participate in the post-program activities by providing opportunities for PYs to utilize the results of the Discussion Program.

    The Post-Program Session aims to deepen PYs’ understanding of the Alumni Associations (AA) of respective countries and the SSEAYP International which is the solidarity body of the AAs, and allow PYs to design possible projects to realize their ideas for post-program activities.

  • Club Activities

    Based on common interests and concerns, different activities were organized to teach and learn from each other for the purpose of promoting spontaneous communication among the PYs with the coordination of the Club Activity Sub-Committee

  • National Presentation

    Activity to introduce the culture, tradition, history, nationality, current situations surrounding youth, etc. of each country

  • Voluntary Activities

    Activities to be voluntarily planned and organized by the PYs with clear purposes and objectives such as events and seminars

The Countries Visited

Country programs, or the activities in the countries visited, were organized and conducted by respective governments and Reception Committees. The Reception Committees generally included members of the Alumni Association in each country. Ex-PYs played an active part in the implementation of the country program, often accompanying the PYs to various venues.

The duration of the visit to each country （Philippines, Vietnam, Myanmar, Malaysia） was 4 or 5 days. The country programs included homestay, courtesy calls on high ranking government officials, interaction with local youth and institutional visits to industrial, educational, cultural and social welfare facilities. During the country program in the Philippines, the institutional visits were arranged according to the eight Discussion Group themes.

For the country visit to Lao P.D.R., a delegation comprised of the Administrator, National Leader of Lao P.D.R. and all the Youth Leaders (YLs) flew to Vientiane for 2 days and paid a courtesy call. Furthermore, overnight homestay was organized for YLs.

Report of the Ship for Southeast Asian and Japanese Youth Program (SSEAYP) in 2015

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