Policy Speech by Professor Keizo Takemi, State Secretary for Foreign Affairs of Japan
"Japan's Policy toward Africa"

May 6, 1999
Dar es Salaam

Chairman of the Tanzania-Japan Friendship Association Ambassador Nhigula,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,

I am sincerely delighted to be given this opportunity today by the Tanzania-Japan Friendship Association to deliver a speech about Japan's policy toward Africa.

This is the first time for me to visit Tanzania. In October of last year I met with Prime Minister Sumaye when he visited Tokyo to attend the Second Tokyo International Conference on African Development. During his visit, Prime Minister Sumayeshowed kind consideration by participating in a memorial ceremony for the late Rieko Hanaoka, a Japanese expert who was shot to death in Dar es Salaam. I felt then that I had come into contact with the sincerity and warm-heartedness of the Tanzanian people. Then in December President Mkapa and Mrs. Mkapa visited Japan. The president himself gave a speech at seminars in Tokyo and Osaka on investment promotion, and I know that Japanese businesspeople were strongly impressed by his sincere efforts toward nation-building in Tanzania.

In this way, I have been impressed by Tanzanian leaders, and I was looking forward very much to this opportunity to step on Tanzanian soil.

Ladies and gentlemen,

I strongly believe that Africa has a bright future. For four centuries until now Africa has been placed in a disadvantageous position both geographically and historically. However, the slave trade has ended, colonial rule has ended, the cold war has ended, and apartheid has ended. So now the time has come for African people themselves to build Africa's future. In particular, we are extremely encouraged by the new trend in Africa to eliminate corruption and dictatorship and strive for people-oriented nation-building based on sound economic policies and outstanding leadership. When I held talks with African government leaders who attended the Second Tokyo International Conference on African Development, or TICAD II, I keenly felt this new current and I was very heartened indeed.

As shown by the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, however, it is a fact that since the latter half of last year regional conflicts involving African countries have been growing serious. These conflicts are an enormous obstacle to Africa's development. If they are an indication that Africa stands at a turning point of history just before the turn of the century, then African countries must unite to overcome the turmoil and to achieve Africa's renewal. For its part, Japan is determined to support the self-help efforts of the African countries toward renewal and reconstruction in cooperation with Asian countries and the rest of the international community. However, the self-help efforts of the African countries toward peace and order are an essential prerequisite for restoration.

The stability and development of Africa is a major issue for the international community. Furthermore, I realize that it is necessary for us to work together with the people of Africa to solve such issues as the environment, development, and reform of the United Nations and thereby build a better twenty-first century.

(African development and TICAD process)

Ladies and gentlemen,

Despite the economic crisis it is going through, Japan still accounts for one-sixth of the world's gross national product and, as the top donor, supplies one-fifth of the world's official development assistance. As an illustration of Japan's ideas about African development, I would like here to introduce the significance of TICAD II. Incidentally, I served as the chairman when the Tokyo Agenda for Action was discussed at this meeting.

The Tokyo International Conference on African Development is a process for realizing Japan's new and positive African policy. Japan in 1991 proposed the holding of an international conference on African development in order to support the favorable political and economic changes taking place in Africa and to provide a forum for wide-ranging discussions on African development.

The First Tokyo International Conference on African Development was held in 1993. The two main features of the Tokyo Declaration adopted at this conference were its emphasis on respect for the initiative of Africa itself and the partnership between Africa and its development partners. These ideas were carried on in the New Development Strategy adopted in 1996 by the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). And they received emphasis again at TICAD II in 1998. Another feature of the TICAD Tokyo Declaration was its proposal of Asia-Africa cooperation so as to utilize the experiences of Asia in African development. Following TICAD, the Asia-Africa Forum has been held in Indonesia and Thailand to discuss such cooperation, thus making clear the great possibility of south-south cooperation. In recent years, there has been an increase of trade and investment between the two regions, and the exchange of people is increasing, too. At TICAD II this idea was further advanced.

The common factors behind these concepts of ownership, partnership, and south-south cooperation are confidence in the potential development capacity of Africa and horizontal cooperation based on an equal footing. Through the TICAD process, I believe that these ideas have become even more widely accepted. And TICAD II adopted the strategic and action-oriented Tokyo Agenda for Action, with the basic themes toward African development in the twenty-first century - poverty reduction and the integration of Africa into the world economy.

(Children's health and parasitic countermeasures)

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Efforts will be necessary to realize the specific goals of this Tokyo Agenda for Action in the African continent. The African countries themselves should take the initiative in making these efforts. For its part, Japan will be very pleased if it can support the African countries and move forward together with them. Here I would like to explain about two areas in which Japan is especially interested and believes that it can provide support: children's health and parasitic countermeasures.

May 5 is a festival called Children's Day in Japan. Children are our future, regardless of differences in race, culture, and religion. It is on the basis of this thinking that Japan supports the concept of eradicating polio and providing vaccinations to children, being promoted by the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children's Fund. Since 1993, centered on the East Asia and West Pacific regions, Japan has implemented assistance in this field to the value of about 2.8 billion yen, including the provision of polio vaccine and cold chains. As a result, polio has just about been eradicated in these regions. And now we are extending these results to South Asia and Africa. At TICAD II we also announced that further efforts would be made to promote the eradication of polio in Africa. Specifically, Japan announced its intention to provide support to Africa in the fields of health, education, and water supply to the value of about 90 billion yen over the next five years. Furthermore, regarding the maintenance of children's health, including the eradication of polio, we are planning to promote grass-roots cooperation through the Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers.

Next, regarding parasitic countermeasures, for example, more than 500 million people around the world are infected by malaria every year, and about two million people die from this disease. As you know, malaria is the biggest infectious disease in Africa. At the Denver Summit in 1997, Japan indicated the importance of international parasitic countermeasures. Furthermore, at the Birmingham Summit in 1998, then Prime Minister Hashimoto proposed the establishment of centers in Asia and Africa for human resource building and research activities so as to improve human resource development and information exchange related to parasitic countermeasures. At present, preparations are being made to establish such centers in Kenya, Ghana and Thailand.

(Human resource building and stabilization of the basis of development)

Ladies and gentlemen,

Besides this, Japan is implementing support in various fields with the aim of putting the Tokyo Agenda for Action into practice in Africa. Among this assistance, I would especially like to emphasize the perspective of human resource building. The experiences of Asian countries, including Japan, show clearly that human resource building is the key to nation-building. We accept about a thousand technical trainees every year from African countries. In addition, Japan, emphasizing human resource building that utilizes south-south cooperation, will extend both financial and technical support to enable 2,000 trainees from African countries to participate in training programs in Asia, North Africa, and elsewhere during the next five years.

Furthermore, support to stabilize the basis of development is also necessary. According to a report by the United Nations, at present there are nearly 20 million landmines buried in sub-Saharan Africa. Last Monday, I attended the first Meeting of States Parties to the Ottawa Convention against Anti-Personnel Landmines, held in Maputo, as the representative of the Japanese government. I was made keenly aware that the international community should unite in tackling this problem, so that the people of Africa and their children can walk safely on their land, and people with disabilities caused by landmines can renew their social lives as quickly as possible. Japan has advocated the "Zero Victims Program," announcing assistance totaling approximately 10 billion yen for the five-year period from 1998 to eliminate landmines and help victims. We are putting this program into action. In 1998 Japan implemented support of about 1 billion yen, and we intend to continue and expand providing active assistance.

(Japan's contribution to the debt problem)

Ladies and gentlemen,

Japan is well aware that the debt problem is a major issue involving the future of many African countries, and we are making efforts toward the permanent solution of this problem. Japan carried out debt rescheduling in the amount of 8 billion dollars to date. In particular, Japan has provided grant assistance to reduce the bilateral ODA debts of 27 countries, totaling approximately 3 billion dollars. Moreover, Japan has contributed over 73 million dollars to the trust funds of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, so that heavily indebted poor countries (HIPCs) can receive debt relief from these organizations. Also, we are planning to organize capacity building programs in conjunction with international organizations. Debt management seminars will be held in several countries including Kenya and Singapore this year.

As the latest means to cope with this debt issue, the Japanese Government has just announced a new proposal on debt relief measures to the participating governments of the Koln Summit, other donor countries and related international organizations. This proposal includes increase of the current debt relief ceiling of 67% for bilateral ODA loans to one hundred percent under the existing international framework to support heavily indebted poor countries, with due attention to equal burden sharing among donor countries. Based upon this new proposal, Japan intends to play a leading role at the Koln Summit on the issue of debt problem.

(Human security and Japan's African policy)

Ladies and gentlemen,

Japan's African policy is supported by a sense of community with the African people. This idea is closely related to the policy of emphasizing human security announced by Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi. At present, many African people face a variety of threats, such as military conflicts, desertification and other environmental problems, starvation, refugees, the violation of human rights, AIDS and other infectious diseases, and antipersonnel landmines. Efforts to eliminate these threats - in other words, to ensure human security - can be said to be an important goal of Japan's African policy.

According to former Professor Lincoln Chen of the Harvard School of Public Health, human security comprises three factors: first, human survival (the ability of individual human beings to live long and healthy lives); second, human well-being (the ability of human beings to enjoy a certain standard of living and to secure the financial resources to sustain it); and third, human freedom (the ability to satisfy the fundamental desire of human beings including intellectual ones).

I am sure you would all agree that the solution of problems relating to human security is urgent. In view of the fact that the problem of poverty lies at the root of these problems, however, I think that the importance of development for Africa becomes very clear indeed. In the past, development in Africa was considered to mean the transfer of wealth from the advanced industrial countries to Africa, with the state as the only unit. However, it will not be possible to solve the problem of poverty through this approach alone. The important thing is for individual Africans themselves to stand up and tackle their problems. I have heard about the wonderful example of African women who have started businesses and achieved independence with the help of just $10 or $20. I believe it is important for governments and international organizations to support these efforts of individuals brimming with vitality and life force.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Tanzania is fulfilling a leading role in cooperation within Africa, such as the East African Cooperation. On the one hand, Tanzania today faces various problems that require solution, such as the food problem and improvement of the level of education, but on the other hand I know that, through the efforts of Tanzanian people, this country is continuing to achieve steady economic and social development. In accordance with the ideas of ownership and partnership that I just explained, Japan intends to continue supporting these efforts. On the political side too, former President Nyerere is making efforts as a mediator to halt the military conflict in Burundi and restore peace there. I hope that these efforts in a wide range of fields-political, economic, and other-will bear fruit and Tanzania will make great strides forward as a leading country in the African region in the twenty-first century.

"Milima haikutani lakini binadum hukutana."

In his speech on the final day of TICAD II, Japanese Foreign Minister Masahiko Koumura quoted a Swahili proverb that says, roughly translated, "A mountain will never meet another mountain, but a man will certainly meet another man." I sincerely hope that the people of Japan and the people of Tanzania, transcending the geographical distance between them and their ethnic and historical differences, will be able to come into even more contact and deepen their ties so as to build a bilateral relationship based on friendship and trust.

Finally, I close my speech with best wishes for the further development of Tanzania and the further improvement of the living standards of its people. Thank you very much for your kind attention.

Asante sana.