Greetings
The current Muslim population of the world now totals around 1.6 billion people, many of whom are concentrated in the
Asia Pacific region. Japan sees the strategic importance in enticing Muslim tourists to Japan in its plan for 2020
Tokyo Olympics and aims to attract 20 million tourists from overseas. In order to build the foundation at a local
level to smoothly accept these types of tourists who have religious and cultural contraindications, Japan must
establish hospitality at a local level as well as realise the cultural coexistence between Muslims and local residents
– there is still a lot that needs to be done.
RCMA’s objectives not only focus on Islamic studies but also cover a wide range of areas. For example, what
measures will be needed for Muslim tourists in Oita Prefecture to make them feel welcome? What will be needed for
local businesses based in Oita or other parts of Japan to conduct business with Muslim countries? With the experience
that our university has gained from its multicultural environment, where students gather from more than 80 countries
and regions, we believe that APU can offer good opportunities and useful information not only for researchers but also
for businesses, local governments, and local people. Furthermore, I strongly believe that RCMA’s various
activities will connect both our unique human resources and the challenges that local communities are facing, and thus
(such activities with practical research topics will) contribute regional revitalisation. Please keep an eye on the
future development of RCMA’s as I am sure they will open up a plethora of new possibilities for our university!
Action Plan
Our research center will deal with the following areas:
- Coexistence with the Muslim culture in the region
- The construction of models that contribute to regional revitalisation as well as further development of local businesses.
- Unique and practical research activities conducted by researchers with diverse cultural backgrounds and research disciplines in collaboration with companies, organisations, and municipalities.
- Research activities about Islam in fields such as; Business Administration & Finance, Tourism Studies, Culture, Thought and Sociology, and International Relations and Political Science.
Main Activities in AY2021
On Sunday, December 5, participated in the Asia-Pacific Conference 2021 as an APU-RCMA special session "Challenging in Implementing Muslim Friendly Hospitality Services (MFHS)" in collaboration with other universities and research institutes. The presenters at this special session are Prof.Nakamura (Nakamura Gakuen), Asso.Prof. Dahlan Nariman, Prof. Ogata (Kyushu International University), and Dr. Mizuno (JETRO). In addition, Dr. Ayang Utriza Yakin (Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium) was invited as a discussant to discuss the differences between Japan and European MHFS. The abstract of the presentation and the poster of the special session are attached to Docment 01 and Document 02.
On January 21st (Friday), an online special seminar for APU students was held under the theme of "Entertainment x Regional Revitalization". The speakers were Hiroshi Osaki (Chairman of Yoshimoto Kogyo), Professor Alcantara (Dean of APM), Professor Kubo (Professor of APS), and the moderator was Assoc. Prof. Dahlan Nariman (Director of RCMA). The poster of this event and the presentation materials of Chairman Hiroshi Osaki are attached to Material 03 and Material 04, respectively.
On Saturday, January 22, RCMA collaborated with other universities under the theme of "The role of next-generation universities that respect diversity and support for young social entrepreneurs." Dr. Mohammad Yunus (Peace Nobel Prize Laureate) was invited to give a keynote speech, and symposiums and presentations on social business were given in this event. In the first half of the event, we introduced social business activities by current students and graduates of Kyushu University, Ryukoku University, iU Professional University, and APU. In the latter half of the event, Dr. Muhammad Yunus gave a keynote speech and we held a symposium on social business. Event posters and schedule details are attached to Document 05 and Document 06, respectively.
Contact
Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University
Research Office,
Research Center for Muslim Affairs (RCMA)
Address:1-1 Jumonjibaru, Beppu, Oita 874-8577 Japan
Phone:+81-977-78-1134
Email：rcma@apu.ac.jp
For press/media requests, please contact:
https://en.apu.ac.jp/home/business/content9/
The Office of the President,
Phone:+81-977-78-1114