Foreign Minister’s Commendation for Mr Callum Farquhar

On July 17, 2018, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan announced that Mr. Callum Farquhar, the Treasurer of the Japan Society of Scotland, will receive the Foreign Minister’s Commendation for his contribution to the promotion of mutual understanding between Japan and the United Kingdom.

As a Board member of the Japan Society of Scotland, Mr. Farquhar has made a significant contribution to cultural exchange between Japan and Scotland.  Not least by giving the opportunity for talented young people to study Japanese in Tokyo, as a volunteer leader in the Scouts he has organised exchange programmes between Japan and Scotland for 30 years and has contributed greatly to the friendly goodwill between Japan and Scotland, especially after the Great East Japan Earthquake. He provided support to the Scouts in Iwate Prefecture that were hit by the Tsunami and also arranged their visit to Scotland.   During the World Scout Jamboree 2015 he was responsible for arranging home hospitality for 3,000 UK Scouts with Scout families in all 47 Japanese prefectures. In recognition of his dedication to promoting strong cultural relations between Scouts in the UK and in Japan he was given a Points of Light Award by the UK Prime Minister in 2015 and in 2017 was awarded the Silver Sakura Medal by The Scout Association of Japan.

The Foreign Minister's Commendation is awarded to individuals and groups for outstanding achievements, to acknowledge their contributions to the promotion of friendship between Japan and the rest of the world. This year, the Commendation has been awarded to 205 individuals and 49 groups worldwide.

For the announcement, please click here.

For the list of Foreign Minister Commendations 2018 (individuals), please click here.