Japan is expected to play a major role in the reconstruction of Afghanistan, ranging from community-based projects to large regional development, the visiting head of the United Nations Development Program said.
Mark Malloch Brown praised Tokyo's proposal to hold a U.N.-sponsored conference of donor countries for Afghan reconstruction, saying Japan, as a major country in Asia, would be "a natural location" for such a conference.
"It's premature to really know the timing and location (of the conference) . . . but certainly, a major lead role for Japan in this is critical," he told The Japan Times in an interview earlier this week.