"Africa is a continent whose time has come and while the opportunities are almost self-evident and tangible, they are there primarily for those who are ready to seize them," FDRE Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn.
"The Japanese business men believe that Africa is the hope for business destination," Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe
Africa and Japan have a lot to share together. As the Prime Minister Hailemariam's quote above suggests, Africa, with its strong population and increasing purchasing power, offers a productive force and a growing market. And Japan, with its headway on quality, manufacturing and improvement of productivity, can offer its knowledge, experience and investment. It was within this dynamics that the Africa-Japan Business Investment Forum 2015 was recently held in Addis Ababa.
Africa is now attracting the attention of the rest of the world. Speaking on the forum, FDRE Prime Minister Hailemariam said that Africa, with its enhanced peace and stability, rapid economic growth, natural resource endowment and growing middle class, is attracting a lot of attention.
And he believes that the forum is the demonstration and recognition by Japan that it wants to become part of Africa's growth narrative; Africa has reoriented its priorities towards sustainable economic development.
The genesis of trade relations between Japan and Africa dates back to 1643 when Jan van Riebeeck first arrived at Dejima in Nagasaki harbor. Literature also suggests that except for some historical experience with Africa, Japan had little interest in economic ties with the region. Fortunately, unlike the previous situation, Japan's engagement with Africa has brought considerable advancement.
Omar Ben Yedder, Publisher and Managing Director of IC Publications and one of the organizers of the event, said that most people overlook the fact that Japan is the biggest project financier in Africa. There is the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), a framework that basically charts Japan's assistance to Africa.
Despite this, Africa-Japan trade sits at a modest 25 billion USD. Japan has always looked and relocated to South East Asian countries which is close to home and a dynamic corridor.
