Countries & Regions

On June 3, for about 15 minutes from 10:10 a.m., Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had a meeting with H.E. Dr. Navinchandra Ramgoolam, Prime Minister of the Republic of Mauritius, in Yokohama, Japan. The following is the gist of the meeting. President Ramgoolam is visiting Japan to participate in the Fifth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD V) held from June 1 to 3.

1. At the beginning of the meeting, Prime Minister Abe welcomed President Ramgoolam’s visit all the way to Japan, which marks his third visit but his first participation in the TICAD meetings. Prime Minister Abe also expressed 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 Ramgoolam expressed his pleasure to participate in the TICAD V for the first time as the Prime Minister, and mentioned that he personally shares several things in common with Prime Minister Abe, such as having served the position of Prime Minister more than once.
2. Appreciating “Abenomics”, Prime Minister Ramgoolam continued to explain that Mauritius is also expecting a growth rate of more than 3%. He also said that the relation between the two countries which started in 1968 enjoys a good level that shares common interests such as human rights, rule of law, and democracy. He also outlined the development plan of Mauritius’s marine resources, and expressed his hope for Prime Minister Abe’s visit to Mauritius. Furthermore, he commended the announcement made by Prime Minister Abe in his opening speech of the conference that Japan is going to accept 1,000 trainees from Africa (“Abe Initiative”).
3. Prime Minister Abe expressed his gratitude for the invitation to Mauritius, and showed his respect to economic development in Mauritius on the basis of stable democracy. He also said that Japan will continue to support Mauritius with a focus on measures for environmental protection and climate change, as well as on disaster risk reduction. From this viewpoint, Prime Minister Abe conveyed a decision to provide a grant aid for providing set of weather radar, in additionaddition to technical assistance associated with the equipment. In response, President Ramgoolam expressed his gratitude to the support of Japan.
4. In addition, the two leaders also exchanged opinions concerning cooperation in the international arena, including the development in Africa.