President Paul Kagame arrived Friday in Kenya’s capital Nairobi for the 6th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VI).
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Announced last week already, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has now announced and provided details about a a bold new African infrastructure plan worth USA $10 billion.
About US$10 billion of Japan’s planned investment is earmarked for electricity-generation projects and upgrading urban transport systems and ports, Abe said.
According to Japan External Trade Organization, Japan’s direct investment in trade with Africa was $1.24 billion, past year which was a drop from the $1.5 billion made in 2014.
The Summit, according to the organizers is a milestone of TICAD’s process since its twenty-three years of existence and the first to be held in the African Continent. The Japanese business community has high expectations for Africa as a potentially huge market.
This weekend’s meeting is the sixth edition of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development, or TICAD. “This is an investment that has faith in Africa’s future, an investment for Japan and Africa to grow together”.
According to data released Monday by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), while Japan’s monthly exports to Kenya average 67.4 million USA dollars, India ships into the East African nation goods worth 193 million dollars and China’s exports stand at 233 million dollars. In 1993, Japan co-hosted the inaugural TICAD conference and has done so in the subsequent years on a five year interval.
In the TICAD discussions, Abe called on his African counterparts to take measures to create a favorable business environment in terms of safety and legal matters so that Japanese investments in the region can be promoted.
The two presidents also touched on deepening bilateral trade relations between Kenya and South Africa. From the viewpoint of encouraging China to exercise restraint and avoid self-centered behavior, Japan must build a strategic relationship with African countries.
Coming at a time when aid fatigue had become apparent, the launch of TICAD was catalytic for refocusing global attention on Africa’s development needs.
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Health and Child Care Minister Dr David Parirenyatwa and Industry and Commerce Deputy Minister Chiratidzo Mabuwa are also part of President Mugabe’s delegation.
