Winners of the AEON 1% Club Foundation Japanese Speech Contest 2024 (Malaysia) – Ms. Nabilah Athirah Nurularifin and Mr. Muhammad Nur Aiman (USIM), along with Mr. Muhammad Aimi Fazril (UM) – embarked on a rewarding trip to Tokyo from February 5 to 10, 2025. Representing Malaysia in the international round, they competed against 50 participants from six countries (Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and China). Following the competition, they enjoyed immersive cultural experiences, including a wagashi and sado workshop, and a sumo demonstration. This unforgettable journey was made possible by the AEON 1% Club Foundation, for which we are deeply grateful. 

On the 31st of December 2024, JLCC participated in PPT (Centre of Core Studies) Open Day.  Members of Nakamatachi prepared presentations on the yukata and the culture of sending postcards on New Year. Students had the chance to write their own Nengajyo and learn to make a oMamori .Thank you to everyone who dropped by!

From the 5th-8th of December 2024, representatives from USIM attended the annual Nihongo Talk Southeast Asia Japanese Language Speech Competition. Ms Maryam Jamila Haris from the Faculty of Leadership and Management represented Malaysia in the competition, where she presented alongside Ms Phan Thi Ngoc Han from Hanoi University. 

The competition included other representatives from Southeast Asia including Cambodia, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Laos and Indonesia. 

On November 18, 2024, Ms. Nabilah Athirah Nurularifin, Mr. Muhammad Nur Aiman Muhammad Reza, and Ms. Siti Sarah Roslan represented USIM in the AEON 1% Club Foundation's Japanese Language Speech Contest at AEON Hall, Shah Alam. They competed alongside five participants from Universiti Malaya and Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. The theme for this year's contest was 「地球のために私たちができること」(What We Can Do for the Earth).

USIM excelled in the competition, with Ms. Nabilah Athirah securing first place and Mr. Muhammad Nur Aiman taking second. Both winners earned an all-expenses-paid five-day trip to Japan, where they will compete against other ASEAN champions.

From the 18th to the 28th of August 2024, USIM welcomed 15 delegates from the Fukuyama City University and Fukuyama Transportation Global to take part in the very first English Language & Cultural Immersion Camp, organised by Pusat Bahasa dan Pendidikan Islam (PBPI) and JLCC. The program was aimed at enhancing participants' communicative skills while engaging in various cultural and physical activities.

On May 18, 2024, Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia, in partnership with the Malaysian Japanese Language Instructors Society (MAJLIS), the Shibuya Ikueikai Foundation, the Komaru-Koutsu Foundation, and Fukuyama City University, hosted the inaugural Japanese Essay and Speech Contest for Universities in Malaysia (JESC2024). The event saw the participation of nine students from six public universities. In the end, Ms. Nabilah Athirah Nurularifin from USIM claimed first place, with Mr. Muhammad Syahrizal Theng Abdullah from UPSI and Mr. Jeremy Chin Chun Keat from UNIMAS securing second and third place, respectively.  

On the 22nd of February 2024, a Letter of Intention (LOI) was signed between USIM, Fukuyama City University, Fukuyama Transporting Co., Ltd., Japan, E.H. Northern Holdings Sdn. Bhd., Malaysia, and The Komaru-Koutsu Foundation. The LOI focuses on the cooperation for the implementation of the Japanese Writing and Speech Contest. This initiative aims to strengthen the Japanese language at USIM through the Japanese Language and Cultural Centre (JLCC) under the Faculty of Major Language Studies.

Mr. Toshiyuki Sato, the President of Fukuyama City University, stated that Fukuyama City University has organized speech contests in several countries such as the United States, China, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam. He expressed a strong desire for future collaboration with USIM in Malaysia. Importantly, this Letter of Intention involves not only academic institutions in Japan and Malaysia but also engages industry as joint leaders to meet the demand and supply cycle. Industries involved in this Letter of Intent will support any academic exchange activities and university-industry cooperation to be carried out between USIM and Fukuyama City University.

On the 21st of February, 5 delegates from Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM) which included the Vice Chancellor, Professor Dato' Ts Dr Sharifudin Md Shaarani, the Chief Librarian, Madam Nor Azzah Momin, and representatives from JLCC, Prof Madya Dr Zoraida Mustafa and Dr Azalia Zaharuddin paid a courtesy visit to Hiroshima University. 

We were welcomed by the Executive Vice President for Global Initiatives, Dr Shinji Kaneko and managed to spend some time discussing future prospects of both universities working together towards increasing student mobility.