Press Releases
Attendance by Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs MATSUMOTO Hisashi at the Opening Ceremony of Global Festa JAPAN 2025
September 30, 2025
On September 27, Mr. MATSUMOTO Hisashi, Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, attended the opening ceremony of Global Festa JAPAN 2025 held at the Shinjuku Sumitomo Building Triangle Plaza in Tokyo.
- In his opening remarks, Parliamentary Vice-Minister MATSUMOTO stated that the theme of the 9th TICAD (Tokyo International Conference on African Development) was "Co-creation of Innovative Solutions to Challenges," which aimed to create solutions to various challenges faced by Africa by leveraging Japan's technology and expertise. He also mentioned that he participated in TICAD 9, strongly advocating for Japan's strengths in diplomacy and international cooperation, namely "hands-on approaches” and human resource development, which garnered empathy from many African countries.
- Furthermore, Parliamentary Vice-Minister MATSUMOTO addressed the issues between Russia and Ukraine and the current situation in the Middle East, noting that significant global conflicts and divisions are emerging. He emphasized the need for Japan, a country with limited resources and a shrinking population, to recognize that our lives are directly connected to global affairs. He also stated that the trust Japan has accumulated from the world over the 70 years since the start of ODA (Official Development Assistance) is an asset, and utilizing this asset globally is an important pillar of international cooperation that should be pursued in the future.
- At the opening ceremony, the female comedy quartet Boru Juku, Minimo-chan, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' ODA PR character "ODA Man" appeared, enlivening the stage with talks and quizzes.
