The education ministry said Tuesday that it aims to raise the numbers of foreign students in the country and Japanese students studying abroad to the levels before the pandemic, or over 300,000 and 100,000, respectively, by 2027.

According to the ministry, the number of foreign students in Japan dropped over 20% from some 312,000 in fiscal 2019 to some 242,000 in fiscal 2021.

The proportion of foreign students who found jobs in Japan also fell, from 47.6% in fiscal 2019 to 39.9% in fiscal 2020.

The number of Japanese students abroad, meanwhile, plummeted 98.6% from some 115,000 in fiscal 2018 to around 1,500 in fiscal 2020.

The ministry said that it is essential for Japan to accept foreign students and encourage them to continue to stay in the country, in order to revitalize its graying society, which is facing a rapid decline in the birth rate.

The ministry plans to strengthen efforts to provide relevant information and help foreign students to land jobs by reviewing priority fields and regions.

It will also promote measures to encourage Japanese high school students to study abroad, in a bid to nurture personnel who can play an active role globally.