Japanese Ambassador Takashi Kurai attended a farewell ceremony at the Japanese embassy for Pakistani scholarship recipients from the National University of Science and Technology (Nust) headed to Japan.

The scholarships are offered by the Japan Science and Technology Agency to promote exchanges between young Asian specialists in industry, academia and government. The programme is known as the SAKURA Exchange Programme in Science or the Japan-Asia Youth Exchange Programme in Science.

In his speech, the ambassador said six students from Pakistani schools have already taken part in the programme, and Nust is the first university to qualify for the programme.

Dr Yasir Ayaz, the head of Nust’s robotics department, received his PhD from Japan in 2009, and has become a central member of the Pakistani alumni association of former students in Japan. The ambassador thanked Dr Ayaz and the university for their efforts and enthusiasm in expanding the Japan-Pakistan relationship in general and in professional fields.

Published in Dawn, July 31st, 2017