Energy, investment, soft loans, human resource, Rohingya issues to top talksBy Imtiaz Ahmed and Samia Tabassum: Trade, investment, soft loans in mega projects, recruitment of Bangladeshis, energy and war in the middle-east and Rohingya issues are most likely to dominate the upcoming visit of Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to Japan during October 26-29, top diplomatic sources in Dhaka and Tokyo said.Both Dhaka and Tokyo are working on selecting prioritized issues to be discussed during the meeting between the two Prime Ministers of Bangladesh and Japan, diplomatic sources said…..Prime Minister of Bangladesh Tarique Rahman is likely to visit Turkey in November to attend the COP31 summit  at the invitation of  Turkey President  Recep Tayyip Erdogan, sources said.Sources said Prime Minister of Japan Sanae Takaichi has  recently sent an invitation letter to Prime Minister of Bangladesh Tarique Rahman to visit Japan at a mutually convenient time as BNP got a landslide majority in the February 12, 2026 parliament and formed the government on February 17, 2026.Japan has been one of the most trusted development partners of Bangladesh since independence. However, in the recent past Japan has developed interest in geopolitical and strategic issues involving Bangladesh, said a Bangladesh diplomat who worked in Japan.The present BNP government has presented a budget that included a number of mega and small projects involving overseas soft loans. “The upcoming visit of Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to Japan at the invitation of Prime Minister of Japanese  Sanae Takaichi will give a new boost to the bilateral relations between Bangladesh and Japan  to a new height, said a high official of the Ministry of the Foreign AffairsThe war in the middle-east has compelled the new BNP government to increase energy prices, reduce dependence on Gulf counties and explore new sources of energy. Against this backdrop, the government has been working on increased engagement with new countries in the energy sector, diplomatic sources said.    Japan is an important source of soft loans  and Bangladesh will seek increased Japanese  participation in the development sector, said an official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs   …….Japan has shown deep interest in setting up a LNG terminal in Bangladesh to ease the energy crisis against the global energy crisis and lack of availability of the products in time, diplomatic sources said .“Migration will surely figure prominently during the talks. Both countries are unlikely to sign a deal on recruitment of Bangladeshi workers during the visit, but talks would have a healthy impact on bilateral human resource management. Dhaka will urge Tokyo to give priority in recruiting Bangladeshis in the coming days,” sources said .The number of Japanese people living in Japan has dropped below 120 million for the first time in 42 years, government data showed, as the nation confronts a low birth rate and an aging society, according to Japan TimesAs of Jan. 1, the population of Japanese residents in Japan stood at 119.74 million, down 0.76% from the previous year, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.The population of Japanese residents has been declining for 17 consecutive years since peaking in 2009, according to the survey, which began in 1968.However, the population of foreign residents living in Japan increased by 353,696 (9.62%) to 4.03 million — the highest level since record-keeping began in 2013, according to the ministry. The number of people who moved to Japan from abroad reached a record high of 720,988 in 2025.Meanwhile, the number of Bangladeshis in Japan has increased during the last two years as Dhaka and Tokyo have set up some constructive steps in recruitment of Bangladeshi students and migrants, diplomatic sources saidThe number of Bangladeshis stood at 44,938 in 2024 and as of June 30, 2026, the number of Bangladeshis stood at some 57,000 and is likely to reach 62,000 by December 2026.The number of Bangladeshis is likely to reach 85,000--90,000 by December 2027, based on the present conditions, diplomatic sources said.Sources said that some 3 lakh Nepalese and 4 lakh Vietnamese live in Japan compared to 57,000 Bangladeshis  in Japan.Japan is eyeing Nepalese, Indonesian, Viennese, Filipinos, Thai and Cambodian citizens and  Bangladesh should eye the  G-7 country grooming manpower targeting the manpower of   G-7, said an official of the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET).Meanwhile, Bangladesh Ambassador to Japan Md. Daud Ali arrived in Tokyo in December, 2024, and the working relations between Japan and Bangladesh  gained new momentum that have been lost in recent years with the political posting of the Bangladesh diplomat in Tokyo, reliable sources in Dhaka and Tokyo said.The USA-Israel imposed war on Iran has hit the overseas employment of Bangladesh creating an uncertainty in the overseas job market, said a leader of Bangladesh Association of International Recruitment Agencies (BAIRA).Since independence, Japan has committed to provide ODA support of more than US$ 30.32 billion as project aid, food aid and commodity aid.An official of the Economic Relation Division (ERD) underscored Japan’s long-standing partnership with Bangladesh, highlighting its consistent efforts to support Dhaka’s economic development over the years.During the visit of the Prime Minister to Tokyo, Bangladesh is likely to seek Japanese intervention in rehabilitating 1.2  million Rohingya refugees in the Rakhine state , as Japan and Myanmar have some engagement in social, political and economic engagements, sources said…….Nearly 1.2 million Rohingya refugees remain trapped in camps in Cox’s Bazar and on Bhasan Char, unable to return safely to Myanmar and increasingly vulnerable to aid cuts as global humanitarian funding declines.Since 2017, Japan has contributed more than $250 million to UN agencies and humanitarian organizations responding to the Rohingya crisis in Bangladesh.Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Saida Shinichi emphasized Tokyo’s continued commitment to supporting both refugees and the Bangladeshi communities that have hosted them for years.Meanwhile, Japan has pledged $16.5 million in humanitarian assistance in March 2026 to support Rohingya refugees and vulnerable host communities in Bangladesh, reaffirming its role as one of the most consistent international partners responding to one of the world’s most protracted displacement crises.Today, Bangladesh hosts the largest refugee settlement in the world, where the Rohingya population remains heavily dependent on international humanitarian assistance.   Meanwhile, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman recently urged Japan to recruit more skilled Bangladeshi workers while seeking more active Japanese cooperation in human resource development, skills enhancement and increased investment.He made the call when Japanese Prime Minister's Special Advisor Uno Yoshimasa paid a courtesy call on him at his Office in the Bangladesh Secretariat last week, said PM's Deputy Press Secretary (DPS) Shahadat Hossain Shadhin.The Prime Minister called for increased investment by Japanese companies in Bangladesh, saying, "Bangladesh government would provide all-out support if Japan showed interest in establishing another industrial park similar to the one at Araihazar in Narayanganj.The meeting also discussed the inauguration of the Third Terminal of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on December 16, the progress of the ongoing Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) projects and other infrastructure cooperation.Meanwhile, in February this year, in a landmark milestone for bilateral relations, Bangladesh and Japan today officially signed the ‘Economic Partnership Agreement’ (EPA) in Tokyo.The final agreement is the result of seven rounds of negotiations held in Dhaka and Tokyo, covering trade in goods and services, investment, and economic cooperation.   The EPA is expected to significantly increase Japanese Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Bangladesh, particularly in manufacturing, infrastructure, energy, and logistics.Japan is Bangladesh's 12th largest trading partner in exports and seventh-largest in imports.  In the 2024-25 financial year, Bangladesh exported goods worth $1.41 billion, of which goods worth $1.19 billion were RMG items, along with home textiles, leather and leather goods, according to the Export Promotion Bureau.Bangladesh’s imports from Japan stood at $1.81 billion in FY 2023-24, according to Bangladesh Bank data, although various provisional data indicated that imports fell to $1.51 billion in FY25, including major items like automobiles, steels, iron and ships. ……… State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir today said strengthening bilateral relations, deepening economic partnerships and increasing investment would be Bangladesh's main priorities during Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's upcoming visit to Japan. "Our main priorities during the Japan visit will be to strengthen bilateral relations, deepen economic partnerships and increase investment," he told journalists here after attending a seminar titled "From Workforce to Strategic Partnership: Reimagining Bangladesh-KSA Relations". Prime Minister Tarique Rahman will leave for a four-day visit to Japan on October 26, Humaiun Kobir said Bangladesh would prioritise trade, investment and development partnerships across various sectors during the visit, consistent with its approach to engagement with other countries. Bangladesh now seeks reciprocal investment partnerships with countries around the world in clearly defined areas of cooperation, he added. Describing Japan as one of Bangladesh's largest and longstanding development partners, Humaiun said Japanese investment in several mega projects had helped build strong diplomatic and investment ties between the two countries. He recalled that the prime minister had previously attended an energy summit in Japan in April last virtually as an invited guest of the Japanese premier when that country faced an energy crisis. The state minister said that engagement had helped foster the Japanese government's confidence in Bangladesh's prime minister. The forthcoming visit would feature detailed discussions on sector-specific cooperation and opportunities for reciprocal investment, he said. Regarding Prime Minister's Saudi Arabia visit, Humaiun Kobir said Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince had invited Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to visit the Kingdom and the premier had accepted the invitation. "He has accepted and will do so at some point very soon," he said.The Saudi Crown Prince had also expressed interest in visiting Bangladesh, Humaiun said, adding that Dhaka would welcome him at a mutually convenient time.Responding to a question on protecting the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah, Humaiun said Bangladesh's position was clear and uncompromising. He said Bangladesh, as one of the world's largest Muslim countries, would stand ready to provide necessary support if its cooperation or assistance was sought for initiatives to protect the Muslim world's holy sites and mosques. The seminar was jointly organised by the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) and the Center for Migration Studies of North South University (NSU).Foreign Ministry Secretary (Bilateral) Dr Md Nazrul Islam and Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Secretary Md Mokhtar Ahmed spoke as special guests.BIISS Director General Major General A S M Ridwanur Rahman and NSU Vice-Chancellor Professor Abdul Hannan Chowdhury also addressed the seminar.