On 21 May 2024, JDS fellows and fellows from other scholarship programs living in the Tokyo metropolitan area were invited to the Potluck Party which aimed at strengthening networking across universities and nationalities. Similar events have been held annually

since 2014, but due to the spread of COVID-19, it had to be suspended after January 2020. This year, marking the first time in five years since autumn 2019, JDS fellows and their families from 13 countries participated.

276 JDS fellows/ young government officers from 16 countries started their visit to Japan in August as JDS fellows under master’s/ doctoral program. Following the last year, visit from August could happen with the usual lively scene, and the joint training program provided an opportunity for cross-country exchanges.
During the orientation after their arrival in Japan, in addition to 30 hours of Japanese Language Course,  the fellows made courtesy visits to the Embassies of their respective countries, visited the Life Safety Learning Centers in Honjo and Ikebukuro, and received briefings on their accepting universities.

In August 2021, the United Nations Asia and Far East Institute for the Prevention of Crime and Treatment of Offenders (UNAFEI) hosted the 1st Youth International Training Course for five days, where 12 Japanese students and 11 JDS fellows had the opportunity to participate online. The theme of the training was “Youth Initiatives for Prevention of and Desistance from Drug-related Offences,” and the participants learned about domestic and international efforts and issues related to criminal justice and treatment of offenders.