Countries & Regions

On June 2, for about 15 minutes from 11:05 am, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had a meeting with H.E. Lt. Gen. Seretse Khama Ian Khama, President of the Republic of Botswana, in Yokohama, Japan. The following is the gist of the meeting. President Khama is visiting Japan to participate in the Fifth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD V) held from June 1 to June 3.

1. At the beginning of the meeting, Prime Minister Abe welcomed the visit of President Khama to Japan, expressing his hope for development both in Africa and Japan on the occasion of TICAD V, which marks the 20th anniversary of the TICAD process. In response, President Khama expressed his sincere gratitude for the invitation to Japan. President Khama added that the TICAD process has led to changes in human resources development and infrastructure development in Africa, and that he hopes Japan will continue to support Africa.
2. President Khama then praised Japan for its resilience which was demonstrated in the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake. He added that further deepening relations of Botswana with Japanese companies will be mutually beneficial for the two nations, and in this regard, he would like to share this opinion with other African nations.
3. Prime Minister Abe appreciated Botswana’s decision to adopt Japanese system for its digital terrestrial television broadcasting standard for the first time in Africa, adding that Japan hopes to provide technical assistance such as dispatching experts to Botswana and offering trainings for Botswana’s technicians in Japan. Following this, Prime Minister Abe expressed his hope that Botswana’s good governance and experiences of improving investment climate should spread throughout the continent and said Japan will step up cooperation in human resources development in Africa, including the training taking place at Geological Remote Sensing Centre in Botswana. Furthermore, Prime Minister Abe said he expects distribution capacity in the region to be improved through assistance utilizing technologies of Japanese firms, including the construction of the Kazungula Bridge bordering Zambia. Prime Minister Abe added that he focuses on Japanese private-sector investment in Africa, including Botswana, in the TICAD V. In response, with regard to Botswana’s decision to adopt Japan’s terrestrial television broadcasting system, President Khama expressed his view that Japan’s system has comparative advantages in technology, and that Botswana tries to support Japan’s efforts to spread the use of the Japanese system.
4. In addition, the two leaders exchanged opinions concerning cooperation in the international arena, including the development of Africa.