Analysis
Japan has long used aid as a key diplomatic tool. It was the world's top donor in 1991, but its overall assistance has been slipping as its debts increased. As China and India seeking to forge closer ties with the African continent, the conference is a key opportunity for Japan to maintain its diplomatic clout. According to the Japanese Foreign Ministry, Africa accounts for 89 percent of the world's total reserves of platinum, 60 percent of its diamonds, 53 percent of the cobalt, 37 percent of the zirconium and 34 percent of the chrome. The African continent remains a potential markets for Japan; and both China and India recognized an urgent need to secure commodities to fuel their economic booms.
In this context, the recent Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in 2006 can be said to have marked a watershed for Africa’s economic relations. The summit re-awakened the world’s major powers not only to China’s growing strategic influence in Africa but also highlighted Africa’s increasing importance. In recent years, China has been providing large-scale assistance to African countries with the aim of securing a stake in the rich natural resources in the African continent; and India has been doing the same.
The conference provided a venue for non-governmental entities to expand a range of high-level contacts. In addition to the World Bank, an African Development Bank (AfDB) group delegation led by the institution's president, Donald Kaberuka, attended TICAD-IV. Also amongst the 2,500 attendees were academics, such as the president of Tsukuba University in Japan and Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz of Columbia University.
There were instances when the conference did not go as Japan expected. For instance, the Japanese government planned to include a statement in the Yokohama Declaration to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent from current levels by 2050. However, the government withdrew this provision after encountering fierce opposition from South Africa, a major polluter.
TICAD summits underscore the importance Asian economic and political competitors place on getting on the right side of African leaders many of whom are sitting on huge mineral, oil and other resources. Africa is also emerging as a last frontier for financial investors. The continent also offers a growing market for low-end manufactured goods that are no longer exportable to the developed countries of Europe and America.
African perspective
The Africans arrived in Yokohama with a number of their own well-thought out agendas. Some voices argued that it would be better if Africa attended TICAD-V (2013) with a continental-wide agenda which could then be broken up into country-specific strategies which could be more fully explored during the subsequent bilateral meetings. Drawing up a common agenda detailing the trade and investment issues would seem a plausible strategy because the nations of the continent are grappling with similar challenge which include poor infrastructure and trade terms that are weighted heavily against Africa. In a sense, Thabo Mbeki embraced this continental strategy as he suggested that Africa's future economic growth should happen through trade and not aid. Mbeki said, "Without discounting the importance of aid, improved terms of trade for Africa are critical to ensure its full integration into the global economy." He also observed that "market access alone does not always translate in the ability for the developing countries to penetrate competitive world markets."
Read more about this topic: Tokyo International Conference On African Development, TICAD-IV
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