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Japan plays a vital role to bringing  peace and prosperity to the African continent and believes that the challenges facing Africa will be best achieved through Africa’s ownership and partnership between the nations and people of Africa and the rest of the world. In January 2001, former Japanese Prime  Minister Mori stated in his speech in South Africa that “there will be no stability and prosperity in the world in the 21^st Century unless the problems of Africa are resolved”.

Japan also supports the Canadian efforts to resolve African issues and I highly appreciate the recent successful official visit by Prime Minister Chretien to African Countries. The challenges that Africa faces are formidable. With close to 50% of those in Sub-Saharan Africa living below the international poverty line, it is clear that the people of Africa have not shared the benefits of globalization. In addition to poverty, Africa is coping with high rates of HIV/AIDS infection, falling literacy rates and inadequate access to clean drinking water. Compounding these grim facts is the reality that one in five Africans are living in regions of conflict and the continent has to deal with growing populations of refugees and displaced persons.

At last year’s Summit in Genoa (Italy), African leaders presented the New Africa Initiative, Africa’s own framework for the development. That initiative, which has since been renamed the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) will be a priority at the Kananaskis Summit.

This NEPAD approach signals the intention of the African leaders to shape their own destiny, to reduce dependency upon aid and to foster sustainable development trough investment and trade. A focus on good governance and democratization will create the climate needed form increased private sector investment.

A key component of Japan’s policies on African development has been the Tokyo International Conference on Africa Development (TICAD). As host of the first TICAD meeting in 1993, TICAD II in 1998, and TICAD Ministerial-level Meeting in 2001, Japan has worked with African countries in the development of the Tokyo Agenda for Action (TAA), a set of specific, action-oriented guidelines that focus on poverty reduction and the integration of the Africa into the global economy. The TAA details steps to be taken by the countries of Africa and their development partners in areas such as private sectors, industrial and agricultural development. Late last year, Japan announced that TICAD III would be held in late 2003.

There is a great deal of commonality between the objectives of the TICAD process and the NEPAD initiative. Both TICAD and NEPAD are based upon a commitment to the improvement of conditions in Africa based upon African ownership and partnership with the international community, and there now exists common recognition that the TICAD process will assist in the promotion of NEPAD.

During the tree years since TICAD II, Japan has implemented a number of measures in accordance with the TAA. For example, with regard to the core problems that Africa faces including basic education, health, and supply of safe water, Japan provided a total of about 53.2 billion yen (approximately 418.9 millions dollars) in grants. With this, schools will have capacity to accept about 310,000 African children and about 2.7 million people will have access to safe water. In the field of population and health, the total beneficiaries, including the number of children who have received vaccination, are estimated to reach 170 million people.

Also, in G8 Kyushu –Okinawa Summit 2000, Japan took the initiative to realize the first-ever meeting between the leaders of developing countries and G8 countries. We also helped to shed light on the need to fight against the infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS. In this regard, Japan for its part, announced “Okinawa Infectious Diseases Initiatives.” And encouraged by the results of this Summit, “the Global Fund to Fight Aids, Malaria and Tuberculosis” was established, and Japan made a commitment to contribute 200 millions.

In her policy speech delivered earlier this year, Foreign Minister Kawaguchi reviewed Japan’s foreign policies and stated that her overarching goal is a foreign policy that is “strong, caring and straightforward.” Development issues are a key component of our foreign policy, as evidenced by Japan’s status as the world’s foremost donor action. Japan is decisively committed to working with Canada and other G8 nations, as well as with progressive African leaders, to bring peace and prosperity to the African continent.

HEM. KENSAKU HOGEN
Editorial (Ambassador of Japan to Canada in Diplomat Investment June 2002)

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