Press Releases
TICAD 30th Anniversary Event in New York
On December 13 (December 12 in NY time), Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan organized the TICAD 30th Anniversary Event at the UN Headquarters in New York, commemorating the 30th anniversary of Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), established in 1993. Many Permanent Representatives of African countries to the UN and representatives of Co-organizers of TICAD participated in this event. The outline of the event is as follows.
- At the beginning of the event, Ms. KAMIKAWA Yoko, Minister for Foreign Affairs, delivered a video message. The following is a summary of the message.
- Over the past 30 years, since the establishment of TICAD in 1993, the importance of African countries in the international community has increased with an amazing speed. Africa is attracting global attention as a continent with dynamic growth potential, supported by a young population and abundant resources. At the same time, Africa is facing development issues such as poverty and insufficient infrastructure as well as peace and security challenges.
- Over the past 30 years, African ownership and international partnership, consistent development philosophies since the establishment of TICAD, have taken root in the international community. Japan and Africa are now partners working and cooperating together to solve various problems, not only bilaterally, but also in the international arena. Through TICAD process, Japan will continue to listen to the voices of the individual countries that encounter the various challenges, and will continue to make initiatives with an emphasis on investment in people and quality growth.
- Next year, I will host the TICAD Ministerial Meeting in Tokyo, and TICAD 9 will be held in Yokohama in 2025. The three years from this year, or the 30th anniversary of TICAD, can be marked as the 'African Years'. I will all the more actively engage myself and work together with African countries.
- Following that, Mr. HORIUCHI Toshihiko, Director-General of African Affairs of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, made a presentation on the outline of TICAD’s achievements. After the presentation, Permanent Representatives of African countries for the UN and representatives of Co-organizers of TICAD exchanged their view and had vibrant discussions on TICAD’s achievements in the past 30 years as well as future role of TICAD.
Since TICAD I in 1993, TICAD had been held every 5 years until TICAD V which was held in 2013. In 2016, TICAD VI was held in Africa (Kenya, Nairobi) for the first time, and since then, TICAD have been held every 3 years. TICAD 8 was held in Tunis (Tunisia) and TICAD 9 will be held in 2025 in Yokohama. The Government of Japan has been leading this conference, co-organized by United Nations, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), World Bank and African Union Commission (AUC).