Tokyo, Japan, Oct 21, The meeting between President Bidya Devi Bhandari and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held at State Guest House, Akasaka Palace in Tokyo, Japan today morning centred about Japanese support in Nepal’s economic development.
Extending gratitude towards the Japanese government for its assistance for Nepal’s development endeavor, President expressed her confidence towards the continued support of Japan to Nepal in future as well, Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Shanker Das Bairagi said.
President Bhandari, leading a Nepali delegation had arrived Tokyo on Sunday to attend the Japanese Emperor Naruhito’s coronation ceremony. During the meeting with Japanese Prime Minister, the President called for cooperation from Japan for ensuring Japanese investment in development of physical infrastructures and to support Visit Nepal 2020.
Furthermore, the Head of the State had expressed her confidence that the master plan envisioned by Japanese professor Kenzo Tange to make Lumbini, the birthplace of Lord Buddha, the centre of world peace would be materialized. In reciprocation, the Japanese PM Abe assured of continued support from Japan for the sustainable development of Nepal.
He also pledged to hold discussions among the concerned sides to reduce trade deficit between Nepal and Japan. He expressed his happiness over the foundation stone laying ceremony of a tunnel from Nagdhunga of Kathmandu to Sisnekhola of Dhading fixed for today.
He apprised the President that the Japanese Government had revised the ‘immigration law to simplify the foreign employment sector and presently over 90 thousand Nepali were working in Japan’.
Japanese Prime Minister assured of assistance to develop Lumbini as a place of origin of Buddhism and thanked Nepal for its concern to the loss caused by the recent typhoon in Japan. On the occasion, President Bhandari and Japan PM exchanged views on the exchange of high level visits between Nepal and Japan and on the extension of Nepal Airline’s direct flight to other cities of Japan in addition to the present Kathmandu-Osaka flight, according to Foreign Secretary Bairagi.
On the occasion, it was informed that Nepal was set to organise the Sagarmatha Sambad in April, 2020 to discuss about the environmental and climate change issues. Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa, Nepal’s Ambassador for Japan, Prativa Rana, Secretary at the Office of President Dr Hari Poudel, President’s Chief Personal Secretary Dr Bheshraj Adhikari and senior officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Office of the President and senior officials from the Japanese side were present in the meeting.
