A send-off ceremony was arranged for the 22nd JDS (Japanese Grant Aid for Human Resource Development Scholarship) Master Batch and 6th JDS Ph.D. Batch at the Embassy of Japan on the night of July 19 for a total of 33 scholarship holders. Among them, 30 will do masters and three will do Ph.D. They will leave Dhaka for Japan next August.
The JDS project supports human resource development by offering young government employees with scholarships for graduate degrees in top Japanese universities. The project is part of the Grant Aid scheme of JICA that works under a government-to-government framework.
The participants in the project are expected to contribute to the socio-economic development of the nation by purposefully engaging in policy formation and execution when they accomplish the program and return to their home nation. To date, 525 Bangladeshi government officials have received JDS Scholarships since 2002.
Through the project, the young leaders also gain the opportunity to understand Japanese society and common interests and goals for work. The program creates a system where academic exchanges become a tool for strengthening international relations.
H. E. Mr. Iwama Kiminori, Ambassador of Japan to Bangladesh; Mr. AKM Shahabuddin, Additional Secretary and Wing Chief-America & Japan, Economic Relations Division, Ministry of Finance; and Mr. Ichiguchi Tomohide, Chief Representative of JICA Bangladesh, represented the respective governments during the send-off ceremony. Other members of the JDS operating committee were also present during the send-off ceremony, along with officials of the Economic Relations Division, representatives of the JDS Alumni Association, and JDS fellows of Master Batch 22nd and Ph.D. Batch 6th.
Hiroshima University, International University of Japan, Keio University, Kobe University, Meiji University, Rikkyo University, Ritsumeikan University, University of Tsukuba, Yamaguchi University, Yokohama National University are the participating universities of the JDS program.