Abe visit a strategic boost for Japan: Nikkei

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's forthcoming visits to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka will strengthen security and economic ties with these countries and position his country as a major player in Asia, says a Tokyo-based business review.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 3 Sept 2014, 05:14 AM
Updated : 3 Sept 2014, 05:14 AM

The Bangladesh foreign ministry earlier said Abe would arrive in Dhaka on Sep 6 on a 24-hour visit.

Nikkei Asian Review, an English language business journal of one of the largest Japanese media corporations Nikkei Inc, said he would go to Sri Lanka from Bangladesh.

It said executives from about 40 companies with diverse product range from such as trading and construction, will accompany Abe on the Sep 6-8 trip.

File Photo

This will mark the first visit by a Japanese prime minister to Bangladesh in 14 years, and the first to Sri Lanka in 24 years.

Following on the high octane Tokyo visit of the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Abe seems to be following up on his South Asian overdrive to place Japan in one of the world's promising emerging markets and investment destination.

Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga announced the itinerary on Monday after the Bangladesh’s foreign ministry had already done it.

Abe and his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina will discuss Japanese assistance for the construction of an industrial zone along the Bay of Bengal, as well as for other public infrastructure as power grids and roads.

Japan plans to provide some 600 billion yen ($5.71 billion) in official development assistance to Bangladesh over the next four to five years, starting in fiscal 2015.

Nikkei Asian Review writes with a population of more than 150 million and its gross domestic product growing at a 6 percent-plus annual clip, Bangladesh is an attractive potential market for Japanese companies.

Earlier in a report it said Japan was aiming to deepen its relationship with Bangladesh ahead of China.

Bangladesh’s foreign ministry said his visit is an indication of Tokyo’s “very keen” interest in expanding and deepening “comprehensive partnership” in all spheres.

Abe will also address the Bangladesh-Japan Economic Forum, formed after Hasina’s Japan visit in May.

The foreign ministry said the Bangladesh Board of Investment (BOI), Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), and Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) would jointly organize the session to promote bilateral trade and attract Japanese investment in Bangladesh.

Both sides had embarked on “a new era of relationship” during Hasina’s visit when Abe confirmed he would come to Dhaka shortly.

Japan established its diplomatic ties in February 1972, soon after Bangladesh’s independence, and quickly became the country’s largest bilateral development partner.

Its assistance comes regularly as grant, aid, technical assistance, and soft loans. The total grants and aid reached $11 billion last year.

During his Sri Lanka visit, Abe will also meet with President Mahinda Rajapaksa, with the two sides likely agreeing to strengthen their partnership in maritime security, according to the Nikkei Asian Review.

Sri Lanka holds a strategic position on the Indian Ocean between the Middle East and Africa on one hand and South-east and East Asia on the other.