FM Rana urges for Japanese investment in Nepal

Kathmandu, May 23

Foreign Minister Dr. Arzu Rana Deuba held a meeting with the President of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Dr. Tanaka Akihiko, on Friday.

The meeting took place at JICA’s headquarters in Tokyo, during which discussions were held on various matters of bilateral relations and mutual interest between Nepal and Japan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) informed in a statement.

During the meeting, Dr. Rana expressed appreciation for JICA’s assistance in areas such as economic growth and poverty alleviation, disaster risk reduction, climate change, and the strengthening of good governance and democracy through its fundamental cooperation policy for Nepal.

She also commended the recent support provided by the Japanese government through JICA in various sectors of Nepal, including the construction of the Nagdhunga Tunnel, the reconstruction and maintenance of the Sindhuli-Bardibas road, among others.

The meeting also included discussions on Nepal-Japan relations, JICA’s ongoing support to Nepal, climate change and its impacts, disaster management, good governance, and issues related to senior citizens, read the statement.

On the same day, at a luncheon hosted by the Japan-Nepal Development Forum, led by former Vice-Minister for Finance of Japan, Motoyuki Odachi, in her honour, FM Dr. Rana urged and encouraged Japanese investors to invest in Nepal as there exists immense potentials in the priority sectors of Nepal’s development, adding that the Government of Nepal is committed to ensuring the safety of their investment.

Earlier, she addressed the annual conference of the Foundation for the Welfare and Education for the Asian People (FWEAP) on May 21 in Tokyo. Addressing on the topic of Social Isolation and Loneliness among older people, she stated that the existing institutional frameworks and legal provisions of Nepal give protection to senior citizens along with key issues and future pathways for action, read the statement by the MoFA. 

Earlier, on Thursday, FM Dr. Rana held an official meeting with her Japanese counterpart Takeshi Iwaya. During the meeting, Iwaya expressed his desire to further strengthen bilateral relations based on the traditional friendship between Japan and Nepal.

FM Dr. Rana expressed her hopes that Nepal would receive an enhanced level of development cooperation from Japan in Nepal’s effort for graduating from LDC category next year 2026.

Mentioning that the two countries share age-old socio-cultural ties inspired from the teachings of Gautam Buddha, she further said that the presence of a large Nepali community, which is the fifth largest among foreign residents in Japan, has been a remarkable aspect of the bilateral relations between the two countries.

Likewise, on Tuesday, Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan Akiko Ikuina paid a courtesy call on FM Dr. Rana and discussed the matters for further enhancing the mutually rewarding relationship and the celebration 70^th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Nepal and Japan.

The Foreign Minister of Nepal is in Tokyo for a four-day goodwill visit. She will return to Kathmandu on Saturday. 

Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 24 May 2025.