Former economy minister Dervis to be awarded prestigious Japanese medal

Kemal Dervis, a former Turkish economy minister and more recently head of the UN Development Program, will be awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun, one of Japan's most prestigious medals. A statement from Sabanci University, whose International Advisory Board Dervis currently serves on, said that only seven foreigners have been awarded the medal, which is usually given to Japanese people, and that Dervis, 60, is the youngest of these recipients.