FUKUOKA: Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad arrived in Fukuoka on Wednesday morning after rescheduling his working visit to the prefecture following a typhoon warning.
Dr Mahathir, who was originally scheduled to be in Fukuoka on Tuesday but had to postpone his arrival following the typhoon warning, touched down at the Fukuoka Airport at about 7am on Wednesday (6am Malaysia time) and arrived at his hotel at about 7.45am.
Dr Mahathir will have a packed programme during his two-day trip.
About an hour after his arrival at the hotel (9am Japan) with the conferment of honorary doctorate by the International University of Japan (IUJ) in honour of his contribution towards the successful development of Malaysia-Japan bilateral relations.
He will then travel to the Japan Future Leaders School (JFLS) at Munakata City, about an hour drive from Fukuoka city, to deliver his lecture on ‘How Science and Technology will Contribute to World Peace’ at the summer school.
Dr Mahathir has been the main speaker at the summer school and this year marks his 16th appearance at the JFLS annual lecture.
The JFLS is a specialised programme held annually for selected secondary school students. Its two-week programme aimed at developing leadership skills among students in various fields of interest through meaningful exchanges with prominent figures.
Apart from the JFLS, Dr Mahathir will also address the Kyushu-Asia Institute of Leadership (KAIL) on Thursday (Aug 8) where he will be sharing his thoughts on New Dilemma in Rapidly Growing Asia with businessmen and professionals in Japan.
Founded in 2004, KAIL is a non-profit organisation that provides intellectual and social infrastructure for global educational programmes.
Dr Mahathir is also scheduled to receive a courtesy call by the special advisor to the Prime Minister of Japan, Hiroto Izumi, on Thursday.
“The visit by Prime Minister to Fukuoka is expected to further consolidate the Malaysia-Japan bilateral relations, especially in education, economics, and people-to-people connectivity under the Look East Policy 2.0,” said Wisma Putra in a statement in conjunction with the visit.
Japan is Malaysia’s fourth largest global trading partner in 2018 with bilateral trade recorded at RM132.57 billion (US$32.86 billion). - Bernama
