King Abdulaziz University is cooperating with several Japanese institutes in the field of seismic activity, following several earthquakes that hit Al-Ais area in Madinah Province last year, said Saudi Ambassador to Tokyo Dr. Abdul Aziz Turkistani.
During a meeting with almost one hundred representatives of Japanese companies and senior government officials of the Kingdom that was held at the Eastern Chamber in Dammam, Turkistani said the two parties agreed on transferring Japanese expertise in this filed to Kingdom.
“There are a number of Japanese companies that are considering investments in Saudi Arabia to build earthquake-resistant buildings in some Saudi cities,” he added.
He said that the strategic storage project of Saudi oil which is kept on the Japanese island of Okinawa is safe and secure despite the two earthquakes that hit the island last year.
“The scholarship program to Japan, created by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah, contributed greatly to the transfer of Japanese know-how,” said Turkistani, adding that the program represented a push toward cooperation with 26 Japanese universities.
Abdurrahman bin Rashid Al-Rashid, chairman of the Eastern Chamber, confirmed that Japanese investment in the Kingdom is approaching new levels. He urged Japanese firms to invest in the Eastern Province, saying, “The province is an industrial hub as its investments represent more than 60 percent of total Saudi investments.”
He said that trade between the two countries increased recently. “Intra-trade increased to more than SR 212 million in 2011, against SR 165.6 million a year before,” said Al-Rashid. Meanwhile, he added, imports of Saudi Arabia from Japan amounted to SR 31.1 billion, against more than SR 180.8 billion of Saudi exports to Japan.
“The action team has completed five industrial projects in the automotive industry, metal processing, water treatment, information technology and other several industries,” Al-Rashid said.
KSA, Japan boost cooperation to cope with earthquakes
