Platform for African – European Partnership in Agricultural Research for Development

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

First Ministerial meeting of Japan- Africa cooperation

4 - 5 May 20I4. The First Ministerial meeting of Japan- Africa cooperation took place in Yaounde, to evaluate the effectiveness of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development V and also to chat a way forward for Japan –Africa cooperation.

Discussions during the ministerial meeting were held under the following themes” Agriculture, Food and Nutrition, Security” “Post 2015 Development Agenda” and “Empowering Women Youth”.

These themes have been chosen partly because the African Union has proclaimed 2014 as the African Year of Agriculture and Food Security. This brings to the forefront the urgent need to discuss the different hurdles that slow down agricultural development in the continent.

Japan told foreign ministers and senior officials from about 50 African countries  that it will continue to arrange for ¥3.2 trillion ($32 billion) in aid to flow into the continent over the five-year period ending in 2017.

With the public and private sectors acting in concert, Japan “will steadily implement the assistance it pledged” last year, Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said in a speech to kick off a two-day meeting in Cameroon on a Japan-led initiative to promote development in Africa. Kishida said Japan will lend a further $300 million to the African Development Bank to nurture private-sector development in Africa as well.

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