Japan will provide $329 million (35 billion yen) to Bangladesh as a grant to help combat the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made this announcement when he spoke with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina over the phone in the afternoon,” PM’s Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim said on Wednesday.
The Japanese prime minister also said their parliament has already approved the grant, according to the press secretary.
During the nearly 25-minute telephone conversation that began around 1:05pm, the two prime ministers discussed issues related to the Covid-19 pandemic, bilateral economic cooperation and the projects being implemented with Japanese assistance.
Ihsanul Karim said the Bangladesh prime minister sought more investment from Japan to further bolster economic ties and put emphasis on further strengthening bilateral cooperation.
When Sheikh Hasina apprised Shinzo Abe of the current Rohingya situation, the Japanese prime minister said he would speak with Myanmar leadership to resolve the protracted Rohingya crisis, the press secretary added.
Sheikh Hasina thanked Shinzo Abe for providing personal protective equipment (PPE) such as masks and goggles to Bangladesh to help contain the transmission of Covid-19.
The Bangladesh prime minister also expressed hope that the 2020 Summer Olympics, scheduled to be organized in Tokyo but postponed due to Covid-19 pandemic, would be held in Japan in 2021.