PM seeks more Japanese investment

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday sought more Japanese investment to turn Bangladesh into a middle-income country within the next 7 years. ‘We have set a target of building Bangladesh as a middle income country by 2021. So we need more support and assistance from Japan to achieve this goal,’ Sheikh Hasina said when a 4-member delegation attending the Joint Bangladesh-Japan Public-Private Economic Dialogue in Dhaka paid a courtesy call on her at her office in the morning. Japanese Vice Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Norihiko Ishiguro led the team. After the meeting, PM’s Press Secretary AKM Shameem Chowdhury briefed reporters. He said the Prime Minister and the Japanese vice minister discussed issues relating to mutual interests including promotion of trade and investment between the two countries. Hasina said a congenial investment-friendly environment now exists in Bangladesh. ‘So the Japanese entrepreneurs could explore this opportunities by investing in a bigger way in Bangladesh,’ she said. Mentioning that Bangladesh and Japan are now enjoying excellent relations, the Prime Minister said her government has allocated land for the Japanese investors in export processing zones (EPZs), according to BSS.