By CTW Team
Recently, Katsuji Nakamura, Japanese language lecturer in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, was awarded the Commendation of the Foreign Affairs Minister of the Japanese Government in recognition of his outstanding and long-standing contribution to Japanese language education in Kenya, the strengthening of Japan–Kenya exchanges, and the promotion of international understanding.
Katsuji Nakamura has served as a full-time Japanese language lecturer at United States International University-Africa since 2000. He developed the Japanese minor program, which has become one of the most popular foreign language minors. In recognition of his excellence in teaching, he was voted Best Male Lecturer of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences (SHSS) for five consecutive years from 2007 to 2011. In 2009, he also became the first recipient of the Faculty of the Year Award, based on student evaluations.
Mr. Nakamura was one of the founding members of the Japanese Language Teachers’ Association of Kenya (JALTAK), established in 2001. He served as chair of the association for nine years, from 2010 to 2019. During his tenure, he organized major annual events, including the Conference on Japanese Language Education in East Africa, the Japanese Speech Contest, and the Japanese Language Proficiency Test.
He has presented nine academic papers at international conferences. These include “Students’ Use of Chatbots for Error Correction in Composition Assignments: A Case Study of the Japanese Minor Class at USIU-Africa, Kenya,” presented at the 5th Conference on Japanese Language Education in Africa, held in Accra, Ghana (and online) in 2024. He also published a vocabulary book and many papers, articles, etc.
Beyond his contributions to Japanese language education, Mr. Nakamura has actively supported events and projects organized by Japanese institutions in Kenya. His long-standing efforts to promote friendship and mutual understanding between Kenya and Japan have been recognized twice by the Japanese government. In 2013, he received the Commendation of the Japanese Ambassador to Kenya during the celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. In December of last year, he was awarded the Commendation of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, an honor granted to only one other individual in Kenya to date.
Mr. Nakamura is an alumnus of Soka University in Tokyo, Japan, and holds a Master’s degree in Literature from the University of Nairobi. He initiated the student exchange program between Soka University and USIU-Africa, which has been active since 2013. He also serves as the patron of the Japanese Club. Last year, he brokered two key partnerships for the university: one with MOL Shipping (Kenya) to provide student career pathways in Japan, and another with KJS to grant students access to AI-powered learning tools for English writing. This has given USIU-Africa students access to world-class education by exposing them to innovative teaching & learning methods that prepare them for an interconnected world. Additionally, Nakamura is an active member of the global Buddhist organization, Soka Gakkai International.
