On the auspicious occasion of the 60th Birthday celebration of His Majesty Naruhito, the new Emperor of Japan, it is a matter of great privilege for me to address the people of Pakistan. On this important occasion, I, on behalf of the Government and the people of Japan, would like to extend our sincere gratitude to the leadership and the people of Pakistan for their messages of good wishes and felicitations on the first official birthday celebration of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan.
His Majesty Emperor Naruhito was born on 23rd February, 1960. This day will be celebrated from here onwards as a national holiday in Japan. His Majesty Emperor Naruhito became the 126th Emperor of Japan on May 1st, 2019, starting the new Imperial era "Reiwa" which means "beautiful harmony".
Japan and Pakistan established diplomatic relations on April 28, 1952, and ever since have enjoyed very close and cordial relationship. I am very pleased to note that our bilateral relations have strengthened over the decades, and have become increasingly multi-faceted.
Since I arrived in Islamabad as Ambassador of Japan to Pakistan in February last year, I have witnessed a steady growth in the relations between the two countries in their multi-faceted sectors. My priority is to further develop and deepen our long- standing and warmly-cherished mutual cooperation.
On bilateral relations, I would like to mention here that a number of high level dignitaries from Japan have visited Pakistan in the recent past and held meaningful discussions with their Pakistani counterparts, which have made our relations even more vibrant. In December last year, Mr. SONOURA Kentaro, Special Advisor for Foreign Affairs to President ABE Shinzo of the LDP , visited Pakistan and held meetings with the high ranking Pakistani officials and discussed matters of mutual interest. From Pakistan side, besides the visit of Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi to Japan last April, President Dr. Arif Alvi, on the invitation of the Government of Japan, also paid an official visit to Japan to attend the enthronement ceremony of His Majesty Emperor Naruhito. Also, Mr. Hammad Azhar, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs visited Japan this January. These mutual exchanges of visits by high-level dignitaries have paved the way for further bolstering the bilateral relations between the two countries.
The cordial and friendly relationship between Japan and Pakistan in modern history is closely related to cooperation in economic and business?fields. In 1950s and 60s, Pakistan exported raw cotton to Japan. Japan processed the cotton into yarn and cloth, and exported them to the world including Pakistan. Japan, in return, exported spindles to Pakistan. In this way, Japan and Pakistan helped each other in their industrialization, particularly, in textile sector.
Let me take this opportunity to say here that the year 2020 has opened up new vistas of mutual cooperation between Japan and Pakistan. It is manpower export from Pakistan to Japan. Last year, the Japanese government amended the 'Immigration Control Act' and took comprehensive measures for the acceptance of skilled foreign workers from all over the world, including Pakistan. Under this new scheme, the Government of Japan recently signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC) with the Government of Pakistan. I feel confident that in light of its potential, Pakistan could be among the top countries to send skilled workforce to Japan.
As you all are aware, Japan will be hosting 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics from July 24 until September 6 and expecting a large number of people from across the globe. As of now, five Pakistani athletes have qualified for the Tokyo Olympic Games and I look forward to more participation from Pakistan in the coming weeks.
Economic cooperation between Japan and Pakistan have always been the hallmark of decades old Japan-Pakistan relations. Japan has remained one of the major bilateral development partners of Pakistan since 1954, extending assistance in multi-faceted sectors. This includes Yen Loan Assistance for development projects, grant assistance for social sector projects and technical cooperation for technology transfer and human resource development.
Japanese Yen loan, grant assistance, and technical assistance, have been utilized mostly for supporting infrastructure and social development, which includes road, power generation / transmission / distribution water and sanitation, agriculture, education, health, security, disaster management, climate change and human resources development. Among others, polio eradication has remained one of the focused areas for the Japanese assistance. The Government of Japan together with other partners has been consistently assisting Pakistan to eliminate this disease from the country.
In addition to the Japanese assistance implemented through Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Japan also funds many of the UN agencies' projects in Pakistan, especially in the areas of refugee assistance, livelihood improvement in the erstwhile FATA districts, border management, and strengthening law enforcement agencies.
The Government of Japan wishes to further develop amicable relations between the two countries in wide range of fields. Especially, economic cooperation has played an important role in strengthening ties between the two countries. The total amount of Japan's economic assistance to Pakistan until March 2019 is USD12.42 billion, starting from accepting Pakistani trainees back in 1954 (Technical assistance: USD556 million, Grant assistance: USD2.648 billion, Yen loans: USD9.215 billion) (At a rate of JPY107.9 per dollar). This makes Japan the second largest economic partner of Pakistan.
Besides extending cooperation in the socio-economic development, the Government of Japan also offers various scholarships to Pakistani students for higher studies in Japan aiming to provide them an opportunity to learn modern knowledge and advanced skills. Every year, MEXT Research scholarships are offered to Pakistani students as well as to professionals working in various fields in order to improve human resource development in Pakistan. In year 2018, Japan also started another human resource development scholarship, called JDS, which is exclusively for young Pakistani civil servants to acquire higher education in top Japanese universities, expecting them to be the future leaders of their country.
Cultural and people-to-people exchanges are the very foundation for our friendship from a long-term perspective. In this regard, I actively support events and programs which encourage further contacts and deepen mutual understanding. I would be extremely happy to see the people working together towards further bridging between Japan and Pakistan.
One year has passed since my arrival in Pakistan. I have had the opportunities to visit many places in this country from cities to rural areas. I am happy to say that wherever I go, I am welcomed by the local people and moved by their kind hospitality. I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude, respect and best wishes to all Pakistani people, who are so hospitable to us and work hard to overcome difficulties and bring the country forward. On this occasion of the birthday celebrations of His Majesty the Emperor, we must renew ourselves to further develop our close relations and make a firm resolve to deepen our cherished ties, which will amplify the welfare of people of both the countries.
To conclude, I wish to share with you that year 2022 will mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and Pakistan. I would like to invite all Pakistani people to come forward and join hands with us to celebrate this historic relationship in a befitting manner.
Lastly, as Ambassador of Japan, I can assure you that I am fully committed to further developing our long-standing friendship through various channels, including government, business sectors, cultural organizations and social sectors.
Long Live Japan-Pakistan Friendship.
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