Vol 2 (AAC) No 11 | JAPANAFRICA Africa slips down the foreign policy agenda 22nd September 2009 After its regime change, Tokyo will focus more on China and the USA and begin a cost-cutting review of its Africa and development policy initiatives Tokyo's pledges to double aid to Africa and offer US$4 billion in concessional loans are in question following the landslide election of the Democratic Party of Japan on 30 August....
Vol 2 (AAC) No 10 | JAPAN Yasukazu Hamada 27th August 2009 Minister of Defence, Japan As the political head of a more outward-looking Japanese military, the Self-Defence Forces, Yasukazu Hamada is taking a robust line against pirates based in Somalia. In March, he ordered two SDF...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 9 | JAPANAFRICABRIEFING Tokyo's new loans for Africa 31st July 2009 Japan is to add another US$4 billion in new concessional loans to Africa over the next five years, outpacing the spending of the China-Africa Development Fund, according to Koji Yonetani, the...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 9 | JAPAN Seiko Hashimoto 31st July 2009 State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Japan Seiko Hashimoto brings Olympic glamour to the Africa-Asia axis. Born in 1964 in Hokkaido, she competed in seven Olympic Games, four as a speed skater and three as...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 7 | JAPAN Hirofumi Nakasone 22nd May 2009 Foreign Minister, Japan Born in 1945, the Keio University graduate began his career with Asahi Chemical Industry in 1968 but turned to politics in 1983 after his father, Yasuhiro Nakasone, became...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 6 | MOZAMBIQUEINDIAJAPAN Old King Coal 16th April 2009 Japanese and Indian interest in Mozambican coal is growing and export prices are rising again. In a deal in March between the BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance and Japan's Nippon Steel with...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 6 | JAPAN Nobuhide Minorikawa 16th April 2009 Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, Japan Nobuhide Minorikawa plays a leading role in the development of Japan's African diplomacy. With wide experience of development economics and diplomacy, he is a familiar face on the African conference circuit....
Vol 2 (AAC) No 5 | JAPANAFRICA Missing the target 27th March 2009 Economic and political troubles at home mean that Japan is having difficulty following through on its pledges to Africa The man who was Japanese Prime Minister in 2007-08, Yasuo Fukuda, was in Botswana on 21-22 March for the follow-up meeting of the Tokyo International Conference on African...
Vol 2 (AAC) No 5 | JAPANAFRICA A 'challenge and a big stress' 27th March 2009 Before China, there was Japan, say Kenyans. The Japanese aid model is built largely around supplying technical expertise rather than direct budget support. Japanese experts in agriculture, energy and education are...