This is a new proposal from Hajj Kyoichiro Sugimoto, a Japanese Muslim revert. The current Muslim population in Japan is about 0.18%. The population of Japan today is approximately 124 million, of which about 230,000 are Muslims and only 10% of them is local Japanese Muslims. Many Japanese non-Muslims are unaware of the true message of Islam, and it is mandatory for Muslims to convey and invite them to the true message of Islam. The Quran says, “Invite to the way of your Lord with wisdom and good instruction, and argue with them in a way that is best.” (16:125) However, there are several hurdles. In general, the Japanese are not interested in religion. Also, Islam has an image of danger and terrorism. Moreover, there are few opportunities to learn about Islam in Japanese language and to interact directly with Muslims. Many masjids do not plan dawah programs for Japanese non-Muslims. That is why I have developed a method and event that allows the Japanese non-Muslims to get to know Islam in a casual and natural way. This is called “My Muslim Neighbors” invitation program. It provides cultural opportunities for the Japanese non-Muslims to meet and talk with foreign intelligent Muslims who can speak Japanese face to face. My role is as a 'magnet' to bridge the gap between Japanese non-Muslims and Islam, the Qur’an and Muslims. Through simple and clear introduction of Islam and direct human interaction with the Muslims from different countries, the non-Muslims can easily remove negative image of Islam in a short time. In fact, most of the Japanese new Muslims embraced Islam through direct interaction with foreign Muslims. Alhamdulillah. During the first year, the program was conducted in Hachioji & Edogawa, Tokyo, Nagoya, Yokohama, Ibaraki, Osaka, Chiba, Gunma, Kochi, Mie, Kobe, Tsushima, Aichi so far. For the second year, I make a proposal of 15 different locations around Japan with the budget below.

Budget USD 5,000

80 copies of Japanese translation of the Quran: USD1,500

Travel costs for the lecturer to visit 11 different locations around Japan: USD2,000 (Hokkaido, Aomori, Iwate, Sendai, Tokyo, Chiba, Yokohama, Gifu, Nagoya, Osaka, Kobe, Ehime, Fukuoka, Beppu, Kagoshima)

Accommodation costs for the lecturer to visit 7 different locations around Japan: USD1,500 (Hokkaido, Aomori, Iwate, Ehime, Fukuoka, Beppu, Kagoshima)