SA-Japan ties set for major boost

PRESIDENT Jacob Zuma will attend the sixth summit of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VI) in Nairobi tomorrow and on Sunday. Zuma and Japan’s Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, are scheduled to hold bilateral talks.

TICAD VI is the first TICAD summit hosted in Africa, and Abe will be accompanied by 140 Japanese companies which will participate in a business fair and numerous side events.

Japan’s focus in terms of supporting Africa’s development will be to assist in the creation of high-quality infrastructure, support to the health sector, and the advancement of peace and security on the continent. Its approach is one of “equal partners”, with a long-term view of Africa’s development.

Last year, Abe’s office established an African economic strategy, which stipulated that all Japanese government ministries must use their resources to contribute towards economic aid to the African continent. The prime minister has been proactive in building his own foreign affairs team, headed by a special adviser on foreign affairs, Kawai Katsuyuki, who recently visited Kenya and South Africa in preparation for the TICAD summit.

Katsuyuki and his delegation of senior government officials also made a special visit to Mozambique recently, where Japan is co-operating with the government in the development of the port sector.

It was Abe’s initiative to invite African youths to Japan to study, and he has strongly supported vocational training on the continent, which will also enable these youths to work for Japanese companies based in Africa. Currently there are 47 South African students studying in Japan. Japan has also been involved in building schools in various African countries.

Japanese investment in Africa has largely focused on English-speaking countries such as Kenya, Ethiopia, Ghana and South Africa. The TICAD process was initiated in 1993 as an advocacy platform for African development. Since 2008, the partnership has focused on becoming a more dynamic, results-oriented mechanism, reflecting the progress being made across Africa.

The focus of this weekend’s summit will be on advancing Africa’s development agenda by bringing together heads of state and government and heads of business from Africa and Japan. The aim is to promote high-level policy dialogue and mobilise support for African-owned development initiatives such as the AU’s Agenda 2063.

Japan has been a major Asian project sponsor in Africa over the past 10 years with Japanese project finance commitments totalling $33.5 billion (R474.6 billion).

Japan has also been actively involved in advancing peace and security on the continent with its forces participating in the UN peace mission in South Sudan, its Self-Defence Force involved in anti-piracy efforts off Somalia, and peace-building in Somalia.

Japan’s efforts to develop infrastructure, improve education and develop the health sector have been welcomed by South Africa which is currently Japan’s largest trade partner in Africa.

It is estimated that about 140 Japanese firms employing 140 000 South Africans are operating in the country.

Zuma is being accompanied to the TICAD summit by Minister of Trade and Industry Rob Davies.