SEPANG, Jan 10 — Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba left for Indonesia today after concluding a two-day official visit to Malaysia.

Ishiba, accompanied by his wife Yoshiko, was given a red-carpet ceremonial send-off and a guard-of-honour from the First Battalion of the Royal Malay Regiment, led by Capt Muhammad Iskandar Dzulkarnaen Doa@Hasan, at the Bunga Raya Complex here.

Also present were Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz and Japanese Ambassador to Malaysia Shikata Noriyuki.

Earlier, Tengku Zafrul presented Ishiba with a special album containing photos of his visit to Malaysia.

The special aircraft carrying Ishiba and his delegation departed the Bunga Raya Complex here to Jakarta at 3.55 pm.

Earlier today, Malaysia and Japan agreed to strengthen educational collaboration to elevate bilateral ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership level.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Ishiba discussed various initiatives in the education sector, including establishing a branch campus of Japan’s Tsukuba University in Malaysia.

These educational initiatives are part of broader efforts to strengthen Malaysia-Japan relations through greater cooperation in trade, investment and clean energy.

Malaysia’s ties with Japan have grown rapidly, with the elevation of bilateral relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in December 2023.

Japan is a key economic partner for Malaysia, with a total of 2,821 manufacturing projects involving Japanese participation implemented in Malaysia as of June 2024.

These projects represent investments worth RM105.2 billion (US$30.4 billion) and have generated employment for approximately 344,996 people.

Japan is the fourth-largest foreign investor in Malaysia’s manufacturing sector and Malaysia’s fourth-largest trading partner, with total trade valued at RM156.75 billion (US$34.41 billion) in 2023. — Bernama