Bangladesh and Japan on Friday underscored the need to strengthen their longstanding economic relations and expand cooperation in alternative financing to accelerate infrastructure development and deepen their bilateral economic partnership.
The issue came up at a bilateral meeting between Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury and his Japanese counterpart Satsuki Katayama at the Japanese Finance Minister’s office in Tokyo, according to a finance ministry media release received on Friday.
Japanese Assistant Finance Minister Mimura Atsushi also attended the meeting, which took place in a cordial atmosphere.
During the meeting, the two sides recalled the longstanding and strong economic relations between Bangladesh and Japan and held detailed discussions on ways to take their bilateral and economic partnership to a new height, said the release.
They put special emphasis on expanding economic cooperation through alternative financing mechanisms beyond foreign direct investment, alongside infrastructure development and trade expansion.
Both sides expressed their agreement to take effective initiatives to make the existing economic partnership more dynamic and explore opportunities for cooperation in new sectors.
Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Investment and Capital Market Affairs Tanvir Ghani and senior officials from both countries were also present at the meeting.
Japan remains one of Bangladesh’s major development partners, having supported several large-scale infrastructure and social development projects in the past while continuing to implement important initiatives and sign new agreements.
Why it matters
The high-level meeting between Bangladesh and Japan aims to secure alternative financing mechanisms to accelerate critical infrastructure development and expand bilateral economic cooperation.