Top＞向学新聞＞2019年6月1日号　特集　アフリカ＞Edem Dayon Dorfe (Ghana)

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I am a currently a full-time first year student in the International Masters’ of Business Administration (IMBA) program of Waseda University. It’s been a little over 7 months since I came to Japan last year. I like to work in the area of sales, marketing and business development, this is because, I love to be part of the creating and develop new connections and business possibility, as well as working on finding innovative ways to expand existing business.

Studying in Japan so far has been a very wonderful experience for me. One of the questions that I get asked the most is “Why did you come to study in Japan?” I thought that coming to Japan would be a good learning experience for me, outside my comfort zone- different culture, food, and language. Secondly I am fascinated by Japanese attention to detail and culture of continuous improvement through Kaizen, which I was first learnt about when I watched documentary series about Japan in primary school.

Daily life studying in Tokyo is both stressful and rewarding at the same time. I live one hour away from school and usually find myself in the rush hour. I have lectures every day, with many assignments and projects which are based on the analysis of real world business problems. I try to find the time to connect with friends and to attend cultural and networking events from time to time which gives me the opportunity to make new connections and learn more about different cultures; both Japanese and other countries. Before coming to Japan, I wasn’t very interested in sports, but I have since come to enjoy playing soccer and dodgeball in my leisure time. I am amazed by the level of orderliness in Japan, and people’s concern for others. Just recently, my student ID card dropped from my pocket on the train and I got a letter from the lost and found office of the police a week later about it. I have since retrieved my card and now I have my own little saying: in Japan, everything comes back to you.

Coming from a developing country like Ghana, we still have a long way to go and a lot to learn on our journey to development. Ghana’s government has recently launched industrialization project it has dubbed as “one district, one factory” which aims at creating manufacturing centers in every district. The reason behind this movement is to try to reduce Ghana’s over-dependence on imports. This is in line with TICAD’s first pillar - Promotion of economic structural changes through economic diversification and industrialization. It is my hope that upcoming TICAD will provide the opportunity for Japanese companies to understand more about my government’s policy for industrialization and would be more motivated to expand their interests in Ghana and Africa at large. Even though, Japan and Africa may be considered far away by geographical location, it is my hope that we get closer together, through trade and partnership.

At the end of my 2 year program, I do not want to have graduated with only knowledge from books and lectures, but I want to be able to form connections with companies and people from all over the world, to share ideas, to collaborate and to find new innovations that I can introduce to my country and continent. This is my dream and vision. On the other hand,
I would like to be an ambassador for my country, to share information about my culture and situation in my country that will help companies make informed business decision concerning my home.

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