By Staff Reporter
PRESIDENT Mnangagwa is in Japan to lead high-level discussions at the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) summit, focusing on two of Africa’s most pressing challenges, the climate crisis and the debt burden.
Amid a troubled global landscape marked by geopolitical strife and a widening North-South inequality gap, the summit brings together African leaders and heads of the United Nations and World Bank.
For Zimbabwe, TICAD’s thematic focus on infrastructure development, industrialisation, health, agriculture, food security and peace and stability is strategically crucial.
These priorities dovetail with the country’s foreign policy and development agenda, providing a vital platform to advance its Vision 2030 goal of achieving upper-middle-income economic status.
In Japan, the President is accompanied by Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister Professor Amon Murwira, Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube, Energy and Power Development Minister July Moyo, Attorney-General Mrs Virginia Mabiza, Deputy Chief Secretary (Presidential Communications) Mr George Charamba and other senior Government officials.
In an interview, Prof Ncube said TICAD offered an opportunity for Zimbabwe to open new trade frontiers and engage with key players in the global economic system, to find a solution to challenges bedevilling the African continent and showcase Africa’s potential in various sectors.
“Zimbabwe is well-represented in this year’s TICAD. His Excellency, President Mnangagwa, is leading the Zimbabwe delegation, but he is also a leader in the South region. So, we are here to engage on various development issues that have impacted the African continent with our Japanese counterparts and the representation is really at the highest level, as well at the African continent level,” said Prof Ncube.
African Union (AU) Chairperson and Angolan President Joao Lourenco, will co-chair the indaba, which has attracted more than 45 African nations, with Japanese Prime Minister, Shigeru Ishiba.
The United Nations Secretary General António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres will also attend the three-day summit along with top officials from the World Bank.
“This is a big, big story. It dovetails with what we are trying to do in Zimbabwe, which is to develop our country, focusing on various development areas and all those areas are being talked about here,” said Prof Ncube.
“One such area, for example, is to deal with the issue of debt and debt sustainability in Africa; this is something that is an albatross to Africa’s economic growth and development. How should we go about dealing with that? How can the world support us in dealing with that?
The other area is dealing with climate change, which is upon us. Our region is particularly affected in Southern Africa. How should we go about collaborating with each other to tackle the issue of climate change, changing our food production systems, agricultural systems, which we are already doing and we are sharing those experiences with others.
“Other areas are in the energy space, looking at how to increase our footprint in terms of investment in the sustainable energy sector, solar energy, hydropower and how to distribute that power within our region and share the available excess power.
“The whole area of infrastructure, development, roads, rail, developments in the IT sector, for example, Artificial Intelligence, which is an area that we have to accelerate our investment in as a country, as a continent.
“All areas are being tackled here with over 80 engagement points and we are here to learn, we are here to contribute,” he said.
Several Zimbabwean companies are expected to sign Memoranda of Understanding with Japanese entities that are among the top-performing enterprises globally.
One such area of co-operation is space exploration, with Zimbabwe set to sign another MoU that will see the country advance its space technology strategy, setting it in a position to commercialise its space footprint for the benefit of the SADC region.
Zimbabwe is already working closely with Japan, specifically its development arm, Japan International Co-operation Agency (Jica), in the energy sector, intending to form partnerships in power generation, transmission and distribution.
Minister Moyo yesterday visited several Japanese companies and held meetings with officials from Japan’s ministries of Energy and Economy, where he pitched investment opportunities in the country’s energy sector.
“The biggest company we visited today was Hitachi Energy, where we were shown their factories where they produce transformers, generators and transmission equipment.
“And they have bought a company called ABB, which used to have a lot of equipment in Zimbabwe, and we think that because of that the companies in Japan might want to co-operate with us and we think that also the number of smaller companies that are into solar energy will be interested in investing in Zimbabwe,” said Minister Moyo.
Representatives from Zimbabwe and Nigeria were the only two people who were invited to speak on energy at the meeting that was attended by Minister Moyo yesterday, highlighting the country’s strategic position in the transition to greener energy due to its abundant lithium reserves.
Over the years, TICAD has been instrumental in promoting African development and strengthening international partnerships.
Japan is home to major automotive companies like Toyota, Honda and Nissan; its electronics industry is highly competitive globally, with companies like Sony and Toshiba.
Apart from that, Japan, a country with a population of roughly 124 million, boasting a US$4,19 trillion GDP, is a leader in high-tech manufacturing, including robotics, optical instruments and hybrid vehicles.
-Herald
