MFA Press Statement: Visit of Minister for Foreign Affairs George Yeo to Japan, 13 to 16 December 2007

Minister for Foreign Affairs George Yeo will visit Japan from 13 to 16 December 2007 to participate in the 2nd Nalanda Mentor Group Meeting. During his visit, Minister Yeo will exchange views with Japanese Foreign Minister Masahiko Koumura as well as members of the House of Representatives. He will be accompanied by officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The 2nd Nalanda Mentor Group Meeting, chaired by Professor Amartya Sen, is a follow up to the inaugural meeting held in Singapore in July 2007. The aim of the Nalanda Mentor Group is to help conceptualise the proposed Nalanda University in Bihar, India. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh offered this initiative as a regional project at the East Asia Summit in Cebu in January 2007.

Minister Yeo and Japanese Foreign Minister Masahiko Koumura will be signing a Memorandum of Discussion to enhance the existing Japan-Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21) and to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the JSPP21. The JSPP21 is Singapore's largest and most successful partnership under the Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP) and has trained more than 3,000 officials from various developing countries in diverse fields.

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MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
SINGAPORE
13 DECEMBER 2007