Japan-Senegal Relations

On August 28, for about 25 minutes, commencing at 6:10 p.m., in Yokohama, Mr. Taro Kono, Minister for Foreign Affairs, held a Foreign Ministers’ Meeting with H.E. Mr. Amadou Ba, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Senegal. The overview of the meeting is as follows. Minister Ba is visiting Japan to attend the Seventh Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD7) held from August 28 to 30.

1. At the outset, Minister Kono stated, “I welcome Minister Ba and President Sall’s attendance at TICAD, and would like to express my congratulations on Your Excellency’s inauguration as foreign minister in April. Also, let me extend Japan’s condolences over the passing of former FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf, who worked hard to ensure global food security. He was known as a Japanophile and had visited Japan many times, meeting with a number of prime ministers. I hope to strengthen the ties between the two countries through TICAD.” In response, Minister Ba stated “I would like to thank Japan for its hospitality in welcoming us to TICAD7. President Sall is a friend of Japan, and has instructed me to further strengthen ties between Japan and Senegal,” and expressed words of congratulations on His Majesty the Emperor’s enthronement.
2. Minister Kono praised Senegal’s leadership in the efforts to realize peace in the region by organizing the Dakar International Forum and the International Conference on the Emergence of Africa. Also, Minister Kono highly valued Senegal’s initiatives to lead economic development in western Africa. Moreover, Minister Kono stated Japan’s hope to deepen cooperation in vocational training and in the promotion of Universal Health Coverage (UHC). In response, Minister Ba stated Senegal’s appreciation to Japan’s cooperation in the field of health, implemented since TICADVI, and its intention to cooperate towards realizing UHC continuously. Minister Ba also expressed gratitude for Japan’s economic cooperation.