ISLAMABAD, March 18 (INP) Government of Japan has awarded NEXT Research & Undergraduate Scholarships for Masters/Doctorate and bachelor’s degrees for the year of 2018 to eleven Pakistani students. It aimed at providing them with an opportunity to pursue higher studies in their respective fields at the leading public sector universities in Japan. The Embassy of Japan here organized a pre-departure orientation for the scholarship grantees who will shortly leave for Japan to undertake their higher studies. Takashi Harada, Charge d’Affaires later in the evening hosted a reception to bid them farewell. He congratulated the scholarship recipients and expressed hope that they would come back to Pakistan to utilize the knowledge and expertise for the country’s socio-economic development. He further hoped the students would become bridges of friendship between the two countries. Japan’s MEXT Research Scholarships was launched in 1954 while the undergraduate Scholarships were introduced in 1958 in Pakistan. Since the first Pakistani student went to Japan on scholarship in 1963, up till now a large number of Pakistani students have successfully returned to Pakistan after obtaining their PhD/Master’s degrees in Japan. Japan awards graduate and post graduate fully funded scholarships to Pakistani students every year besides offering many short-term scholarships and training courses round the year. South Asia Federation of Japanese Universities Alumni Associations (SAFJUAA) was hosted by MEXT Alumni Association of Pakistan (MAAP) this year, where delegates from Nepal and Sri Lanka participated in the two-day conference. A Japanese language speech contest was also held in which participants from Pakistan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka took part. Mr. Harada awarded certificates to the participants and also invited SAFJUAA dele INP/J/AJ