The Japanese Embassy in Dhaka Wednesday celebrated former principal secretary at Prime Minister's Office and former chief coordinator for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Abul Kalam Azad's receipt of the "The Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star" award of Japan.

Azad received the honour for his longstanding contribution to Bangladesh-Japan economic ties.

"Azad's achievements and contributions to Japan-Bangladesh relations are remarkable. I am particularly pleased that we are able to celebrate Azad's conferment in the year of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and Bangladesh," Japanese Ambassador Ito Naoki said.

On May 10, 2022, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida conferred the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star to Azad in Tokyo.

Azad specifically contributed to the Japanese development projects in Bangladesh under the Initiative of BIG-B (The Bay of Bengal Industrial Growth Belt) as a promoter within the government from the conceptual stage and laid the foundations for the strong development partnership between Bangladesh and Japan.

Read: Japanese Embassy celebrates 50 years in Dhaka

Azad also co-chaired the Japan-Bangladesh Public-Private Economic Dialogue (PPED) with the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry of Japan from 2014 to 2019.

His leadership through PPED enhanced public and private investment from Japan to Bangladesh, and Japan acknowledged Bangladesh as an attractive place for investment today.