The government and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) signed a grant agreement on Monday, paving the way for public  officials to seek higher education in Japanese universities.

The agreement was signed by Economic Relations Division (ERD) Secretary Md Shahriar Kader Siddiky and Chief Representative of JICA’s Bangladesh Office Takahashi Junko, said a press release.

The JDS Scholarship (Japanese Grant Aid for Human Resource Development Scholarship) programme offers opportunities to the potential young government officials to pursue Master’s and Ph.D in reputed Japanese universities.

Successful JDS fellows would contribute to formulating and implementing policies for the socio-economic development of Bangladesh. Besides pursuing higher education, they would also get acquainted with the Japanese culture, traditions, food, and environment.

Under the agreement,up to USD$3.51 Million in scholarships will be provided for 33 government officials to study in Japanese universities. Out of the 33, 30 students would pursue a Master’s, and 3 students would pursue a Ph.D.

Till now, 623 Bangladeshi government officials have received JDS Scholarships since 2002.

Before the signing of the agreement, Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Saida Shinichi and ERD Secretary Shahriar signed the Exchange of Notes for this project.