TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Monday pledged loans and other economic aid worth $5.9 billion to Bangladesh over the next five years.

Abe made the promise as he held talks with his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina who arrived in Tokyo on Sunday, the foreign ministry said.

Japan will provide Bangladesh with assistance worth up to 600 billion yen ($5.9bn), mainly government loans, over four or five years, a statement said.

The sum will include a loan package totalling 120 billion yen which was promised by Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida during his visit to Bangladesh in March.

The multi-year assistance is expected to cover public works such as construction of roads and power plants, local media said.

“Bangladesh has great economic potential,” Abe told reporters, according to Kyodo News.

“In order to realise its potential and expedite further growth, Japan has come up with the concept of the Bay of Bengal industrial growth belt,” he said.

Hasina, who met Emperor Akihito earlier in the day, is scheduled to stay in Japan until Wednesday.—AFP

Published in Dawn, May 27th, 2014