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| Sunday, 13 February 2005 |
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Finance Minister brings US $ 81m from Japan Japan pledges an outright grant of US$ 81 million as tsunami emergency relief aid and its unstinted support to Sri Lanka in the reconstruction and development of the devastated areas, Finance Ministry media sources said. In an official visit to Tokyo during the week, Finance Minister Dr.Sarath Amunugama, had succeeded in striking this deal with his Japanese counterpart Sadakazu Tanigaki and Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura, they added. Minister Amunugama has thanked the Japanese government for the grant and the medium and long-term reconstruction and development assistance pledged by them in the aftermath of the catastrophe. He also lauded the prompt medical and humanitarian assistance extended by the Japanese government and NGOs for the alleviation of suffering of the tsunami victims in the Southern, Eastern and Northern coastal belts. During the high-level bilateral consultations, Finance Minister Tanigaki had vouched for the provision of continued assistance in the reconstruction and development of infrastructural and technical support, human resources, financial assistance and consistent regular Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) to Sri Lanka. While conveying Sri Lanka's desire in enhancing the degree of bilateral consultations between the two finance ministries in the future, Dr. Amunugama has extended an invitation to Minister Tanigaki, to visit Sri Lanka at a mutually convenient time. Dr. Amunugama had conducted lengthy discussions with the Japan Bank Governor for International Cooperation (JBIC) Kyosuke Shinozawa and Japan International Corporation Agency (JICA) Sadako Ogata, on the ongoing development projects in Sri Lanka, including fisheries, power and energy and irrigation sectors, in addition to the special assistance given to the tsunami-affected regions. He had also paid courtesy calls on the Senior Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Shuzen Tanigawa, Japan-Sri Lanka Association Chairman and former Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda and the Japanese Central Bank Governor Toshihiko Fukui. |
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