5 decades of trust bind BD, Japan
The bilateral relationship between Bangladesh and Japan is rooted in more than five decades of friendship, mutual trust and cooperation, Yohei Sasakawa, Honorary Chairman of the Nippon Foundation, said on Sunday.
Sasakawa made the remarks during a courtesy call on State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir at the latter’s office in Dhaka.
During the meeting, Sasakawa highlighted the Nippon Foundation’s longstanding engagement with Bangladesh, noting that its cooperation with the country dates back to 1971, when it provided emergency relief to displaced people during Bangladesh’s Liberation War.
“Our cooperative efforts began in 1971 with emergency relief for displaced persons during your nation’s independence,” he said, according to a statement.
Since then, the foundation has continued to support the people of Bangladesh through initiatives in development, healthcare and education, Sasakawa said. He also highlighted the foundation’s recent focus on the humanitarian crisis involving Rohingyas who have taken refuge in Bangladesh after fleeing persecution in Myanmar.
Sasakawa briefed the State Minister on the Nippon Foundation’s longstanding efforts to eliminate leprosy. He said he and his organisation had been involved in leprosy eradication programmes for more than four decades, working with the World Health Organisation (WHO), governments, international organisations, non-governmental organisations and organisations representing people affected by leprosy.
He expressed the foundation’s willingness to provide further assistance to leprosy patients in Bangladesh.
State Minister Humaiun Kobir appreciated the Nippon Foundation’s continued engagement with Bangladesh and Japan’s humanitarian assistance to forcibly displaced Myanmar nationals sheltering in the country.
He also praised Japan’s efforts to find a durable solution to the Rohingya crisis through the safe, voluntary, sustainable and dignified repatriation of refugees to Rakhine State in Myanmar.
The State Minister said Bangladesh remained firmly committed to working with Japan and the wider international community to address the prolonged humanitarian crisis and its broader regional implications.
The meeting underscored the humanitarian and development dimensions of Bangladesh-Japan relations, with both sides stressing the importance of continued cooperation in healthcare, education, humanitarian assistance and efforts to resolve the Rohingya crisis.
The Nippon Foundation’s engagement with Bangladesh since independence has also added a people-centred dimension to the broader relationship between Dhaka and Tokyo.
