The Embassy of Japan in Vietnam is currently working with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Education and Training to select eligible students, including four youths for 12-month exchanges and 330 others for 10-day exchanges, said Furudate, who is in charge of cultural affairs at the Japanese Embassy in Hanoi on August 29.

The participants will be allowed to visit famous Japanese sites and enjoy home-stays with Japanese families.

Some 6,000 young people from East Asia Summit member countries will be annually invited to join the programme over the next five years.