Visit to African Countries by Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs Itsunori Onodera
(Summary and Evaluation)
- Senegal, Gabon, Cameroon -
January 2005
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 Parliamentary Secretary Onodera (center) being welcomed by children at Sangmelima Primary School (Cameroon) |
 Parliamentary Secretary Onodera (left) and President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal (right) |
1. Summary
Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs Itsunori Onodera visited western and central African countries (Senegal, Gabon and Cameroon) from January 10 to 18.
Parliamentary Secretary Onodera held meetings with the presidents, foreign ministers and other senior officials of each country and sought their support for the early realization of United Nations (UN) and Security Council reforms as well as for Japan's candidature for permanent membership of the Security Council. Parliamentary Secretary Onodera further explained to these countries how Japan is actively engaged in cooperative efforts with Africa, mainly through the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) process.
Parliamentary Secretary Onodera also endeavored to develop diplomatic relations rooted in the localities by observing those projects to which Japan has provided economic cooperation, exchanging opinions with Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JOCV), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) experts and Japanese nationals in the countries, and engaging in other activities.
(1) Republic of Senegal
| (a) | Parliamentary Secretary Onodera held meetings with President Abdoulaye Wade and Minister of Foreign Affairs Cheikh Tidiane Gadio of the Republic of Senegal and exchanged opinions on the enhancement of bilateral relations between Japan and Senegal, issues regarding the development of Africa and cooperation in the international arena including the UN. |
| (b) | Parliamentary Secretary Onodera also visited Ecole Nationale de Developpement Sanitaire et Sociale (ENDSS) (National Institution for Health and Social Development), which is a grant aid and technical cooperation project, and exchanged opinions with JOCVs, JICA experts and Japanese nationals in Senegal. |
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Parliamentary Secretary Onodera (left) and President El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba of Gabon (right) |
(2) Gabonese Republic
| (a) | Parliamentary Secretary Onodera held meetings with President El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba, Minister Delegate of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and Francophonie Affairs Jean-Francois Ndongou and other senior government officials of the Gabonese Republic and exchanged opinions on the enhancement of bilateral relations between Japan and Gabon, stability in central Africa and cooperation in the international arena including the UN. |
| (b) | Parliamentary Secretary Onodera also visited and observed the Owendo Communal Fisheries Center (cooperation project by the Overseas Fishery Cooperation Foundation (OFCF)) and exchanged opinions with Japanese nationals in Gabon. |
 Parliamentary Secretary Onodera (left) and President Paul Biya of Cameroon (right) |
 An article on Parliamentary Secretary Onodera's visit to Cameroon on the front page of the Cameroon Tribune, dated January 18 |
(3) Republic of Cameroon
| (a) | Parliamentary Secretary Onodera held meetings with President Paul Biya, Prime Minister Ephraim Inoni, Minister of External Relations Laurent Esso and other senior officials of the Republic of Cameroon and exchanged opinions on the enhancement of bilateral relations between Japan and Cameroon, stability in central Africa and cooperation in the international arena including the UN. |
| (b) | Parliamentary Secretary Onodera also attended the signing ceremony of the exchange of notes between Japan and Cameroon concerning the technical cooperation agreement on January 17. |
| (c) | Furthermore, Parliamentary Secretary Onodera visited and observed the container terminal at Douala Port (loan aid cooperation project) and the Sangmelima Primary School (grant aid cooperation project) as well as visited Meyomessala, which has concluded a friendship and goodwill city agreement with Nakatsue Village of Oita Prefecture, where Cameroon's national football team stayed during the 2002 FIFA World Cup. |
2. Evaluation
- Parliamentary Secretary Onodera's visit further enhanced Japan's friendly and cooperative relations with the three countries and a sufficient level of opinion exchange was conducted regarding the UN and Security Council reforms.
- This year Africa will attract significant international attention as there are the Group of Eight (G8) Gleneagles Summit (with Africa being one of the main themes), summit meetings to review the United Nations Millennium Declaration and many other events. In light of this, Japan described how it is actively engaged in cooperative efforts with Africa, centering on the TICAD process, and gained the support of the high-level officials of the three countries.
- Diplomatic and public relations rooted in the localities where concerned parties are engaged in face-to-face contact with one another were developed by observing economic cooperation projects, exchanging opinions with JOCVs, experts and Japanese nationals in these countries, and engaging in other activities.
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