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| Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi addresses an online meeting with African counterparts of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development on March 26, 2022, at his ministry in Tokyo. (File photo by=Kyodo) |
[Asia News = Reporter Reakkana] TOKYO: Japan will pledge to assist Africa to double rice production on the continent in response to the global food crisis exacerbated by Russia's war in Ukraine, the draft says the aid package will be unveiled at an African development conference in late August, Kyodo reported.
Japan will also urge African countries to ensure transparency when they raise funds for development in light of China's so-called debt-trap diplomacy toward developing countries, says the draft, a copy of which was made available on Thursday. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will represent Japan at the eighth Tokyo International Conference on African Development, or TICAD8, slated for Aug. 27 and 28 in Tunisia. Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi is also considering attending the gathering, according to government sources.
In the meeting, Japan plans to dispel views in Africa, apparently influenced by Russia, that the food crisis was triggered by sanctions the Group of Seven industrialized nations imposed on Moscow. According to the draft, Japan will extend food aid to African countries in the short term and help them boost food production capabilities in the longer term. The TICAD meeting will be held as concerns about food security have grown in Africa and the Middle East, regions that are highly dependent on grain imports from Ukraine, a major agricultural producer.
