(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) TOKYO, May 20 (KUNA) -- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced on Friday that Japan will accept up to 150 Syrian refugees as foreign students in the next five years as part of its efforts to help refugees in the war-torn country.
Abe made an announcement at a Cabinet task force meeting on "sustainable development goals" ahead the Group of Seven (G-7) summit in central Japan on May 26-27.
The task force was launched in line with the UN sustainable development goals, which was adopted last September at the UN summit.
"The sustainable development goals are global common targets to which all the countries, including developed nations, are addressing. Japan should play a leading role in the global efforts and I urge the government agencies to work as a team in approaching the issues," Abe told the meeting.
According to the Foreign Ministry, the plan is aimed at extending opportunities of education to Syrian youths deprived of learning opportunities due to the crisis. The arrangement is also expected to foster human resources who will contribute to the recovery of Syria in the future, the ministry said. Under the plan, Syrian students will be accepted by means of such as technical cooperation of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
In addition, Tokyo plans to provide an assistance package of about USD six billion for the Middle East for the three years starting from 2016 in order to prevent the expansion of violent extremism and build "tolerant and stable society" in the region, the ministry said.
The package covers such as humanitarian aid for Syrian and Iraqi refugees and assistance for the neighboring countries hosting those refugees, including Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon. The government also plans to train about 20,000 people. (end) mk.gta