Nobutake Odano

Japanese Ambassador to European Union

Date of Birth: 1948

As the man responsible for coordinating the fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development scheduled for May 28-30 2009, Ambassador Nobutake Odano has covered a lot of miles in the last six months. Shuttling between Tokyo and Africa, Odano has led preparatory meetings in Zambia, Tunisia, Tanzania and Gabon, with stopovers in London and Brussels to drum up support. Japan's choice of an efficient, experienced diplomat highlights the importance it places on the TICAD IV proceedings.

Born in 1948, Odano studied economics at Keio University, Japan's oldest university, which boasts numerous political luminaries among its graduates. He entered the foreign service in 1970. In 1989, he began a long string of international postings, as a counsellor at Japan's embassy to Britain. At the same time, he was a fellow at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House. The following year, he moved to the Embassy in Germany, where he spent four years. He has also served as Ambassador to Australia and to Myanmar, twice.

Returning to Tokyo, he became more closely involved in African affairs in 1995 when he was appointed Director of Planning for the Japan International Cooperation Agency. He took a direct role in the TICAD III preparations as the Foreign Ministry's Director-General for African Affairs, where he managed foreign relations with the African continent.