Prime Minister Tarique Rahman and his wife Dr Zubaida Rahman tonight attended a dinner hosted by Yohei Sasakawa, honorary chairman of the Nippon Foundation and the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, in Tokyo.

The dinner was held at the Hanagasumi Restaurant at Meiji Kinenkan in the Japanese capital, said Prime Minister’s Deputy Press Secretary Shahadat Shadhin.

During the dinner, the Prime Minister recalled his meeting with Sasakawa in Dhaka last September and thanked him for his longstanding contributions to Bangladesh in humanitarian assistance, education and public health.

They also discussed potential cooperation in establishing a vaccine manufacturing facility in Bangladesh to help control infectious diseases.

Sasakawa paid a courtesy call on Tarique Rahman during his visit to Bangladesh last September.

Finance and Planning Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister M. Rashiduzzaman Millat, Prime Minister’s Adviser on Finance and Planning Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir, State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Anindya Islam Amit and Prime Minister’s Special Assistant for Foreign Employment in the Asia-Pacific region Dr Md Shakirul Islam Khan, were present, among others.

Nippon Foundation Executive Director Takashi Arikawa and senior officials of the foundation were also present.