11th March, 2019 The 9th National Soroban Competition in the Kingdom of Tonga was held on Thursday, 7 March 2019 at the Queen Salote Memorial Hall in Nuku’alofa. His Excellency Mr. Tetsuya Ishii, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to the Kingdom of Tonga, attended the competition along with Dr. Raelyn ‘Esau, Acting Chief Executive Officer, Ministry of Education and Training. Present also at the competition were Mr. Masao Fujii, Director General of the International Soroban Diffusion Foundation (ISDF) from Japan, Mr. Shinji Yoshiura, Resident Representative of JICA-Tonga, soroban teachers, parents and supporters of the competitors.
His Excellency Mr. Tetsuya Ishii welcomed the young soroban competitors partially in Tongan language and reiterated the significance of soroban being expressed in the “Three C’s.” “Soroban is not only good for improving your Calculation Skills, but also for boosting your Concentration and for enhancing your Confidence,” he said. He was pleased that through soroban, Japan and Tonga share a cultural and educational bond of friendship held together by their commitment to provide children with a good education. The Ambassador hopes that this bond of friendship will also be further strengthened through the upcoming events such as enthronement ceremony of the Emperor of Japan in October, the Rugby World Cup from September to November this year, the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics Summer Games as well as the 50th Anniversary of the diplomatic relations between Japan and Tonga, next year.
Dr. Raelyn ‘Esau, Acting CEO of the Ministry of Education and Training conveyed, on behalf of His Majesty’s Government, heartfelt gratitude for Japan’s continuing generous support for education in Tonga. She acknowledged the joint commitment towards the advancement of soroban education and said “I believe that the soroban program provides our children with unique pathways for their future academic endeavours. I wish to recommit our support for soroban education in Tonga and I hope that we will continue to foster our warm working relations between the peoples of Japan and Tonga.”
The National Soroban Competition engages over hundred class 4 and class 5 primary students from all over the Kingdom to compete each other in an eight minutes written examination, as well as in an oral and a flash calculation. Malia Siena Pe’ei from St. Falakiko ‘Asisi Primary School won the written category for class 5 and wins herself the annual trip to the soroban camp in Oze, Gunma Prefecture, Japan. The camp is fully funded by the International Soroban Diffusion Foundation, ISDF and will be held in August this year. (complete result of the competition is attached herewith)
In acknowledging the successful competition H.E Tetsuya Ishii hosted a reception in the evening and thanked the commitments from soroban educators in Tonga. The Ministry of Education and Training and the Embassy of Japan have co-hosted the competition with the support from JICA-Tonga and ISDF.
Attached: Photos
RESULT – Tonga National Competition (March 07, 2019)
Oral/Class5
ENDS
For further enquires please contact: Ms. Yoko Tochihara, Administration Officer Embassy of Japan in Tonga. Level 5, National Reserve Bank of Tonga Building / Telephone: 22-221 / Fax 27-025