Govt to seek $1b budget support from Japan

Bangladesh will seek $1 billion from Japan as budget support during Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus' visit to Japan on May 28-31.

The two countries will also sign at least seven memoranda of understanding on energy, development and capacity building of special economic zone, the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority and investments, The Daily Star has learnt from people involved with the proceedings.

Bangladesh will also seek sectoral cooperation support in the areas of shipbuilding and infrastructure development including railways, energy and blue economy.

"We will seek budget support of $1 billion. We are hopeful of getting it, but let's see," a diplomatic source told The Daily Star yesterday.

During the three-day tour, Yunus will attend the 30th Nikkei Forum in Tokyo. He is listed as one of the speakers in the two-day event.

On the sidelines, he is likely to hold a number of meetings including Ji Liqun, president of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.

On May 30, Yunus will hold a bilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.

"We will discuss all areas of our relationship, but will focus on trade and investment, economic cooperation and Rohingya crisis," said another diplomatic source

Trade between the two countries stands at $4 billion, with negotiations ongoing for an Economic Partnership Agreement to be signed by the end of this year, said a foreign ministry official.

More than 350 Japanese companies are currently operating in Bangladesh, and more are willing to invest here, he said.

Since Bangladesh's independence, Japan has provided a total of $24.72 billion -- almost evenly split between grants and loans.

Currently, Japan is funding more than 70 projects, including major ones like the third terminal of the Dhaka airport, Matarbari deep sea port and metro rail.

During the foreign office consultation in Tokyo on May 15, Bangladesh sought Japan's support for more concessional loans, extension of loan repayment period and budgetary support.

"Japan is very positive about providing overseas development assistance to Bangladesh. We are expecting more support in the days to come," Nazrul Islam, secretary (East) of the foreign affairs ministry, who led the Bangladesh side, told The Daily Star.

Japan is also likely to continue Bangladesh's duty-free, quota-free access following graduation from the least-developed country bracket. It is also likely to extend market access to Bangladeshi fruits and vegetables.

Under the Bay of Bengal Initiatives (Big-B), Japan would engage with Bangladesh more robustly for building high-quality infrastructure development projects and would encourage Japanese manufacturing plants and production houses to extend their production and industrial value chain to Bangladesh.

Under the new plan for Free and Open Indo-Pacific and Big-B initiatives, Japan wants to see the sustainable development of the region.

"We would seek strong Japanese support for resolving the Rohingya crisis," said a foreign ministry official.