Africa is engaged inpartnerships across the globe to drive its socio-economic transformation agenda.Tokyo international conference on African development (TICAD)conceptualised 30 years ago is the oldest, set upmuch before other high profile global powers like China, EU, US, etc stepped in withsimilar initiatives. Forum on China Africa cooperation (FOCAC)andTICAD haveevolved over the years into powerful platforms for promoting Africa’s partnership with Asian economic giants of Japan and China.
Japan’s justconcluded eighth TICAD on 27th August in Tunisia is significant in many ways.Apart from markingthe return of TICAD to the African continent for the first time since 2016,TICAD 8 also happenedin the backdrop of turbulent globaldevelopments like COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.WhileAfrica is fighting fuel and food crisis and climate change, Japan is faced with political challenges following the tragic assassination of its former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo, who was a guiding light in the Japan-Africa partnership.
Partnership, ownership, and human security continued to be the central agenda of the 2022 TICAD. The conference was flagged off with the Japanese PM Kishida’s announcement of $30 billion in public and private investment and training for 300,000 Africans over the next three years. Tokyo has also intensified its efforts on its global health care initiatives.It also asserted Tokyo’s ambition to partner with Africa to “strengthen the rule-based, free, and open international order”.
Today’s complex international order presents both challenges and opportunities for Japan-Africa cooperation.TICAD 8 has taken place at a time when there have beensignificant shifts in China’s priorities, and approaches from its earlier patterns. In fact, FOCAC held in November 2021broughta sharp cut in China’s financial commitments from $60 billion in 2018 to $40 billion this year. China alsoappears to be scaling down its projects in Africa. The number of committed projects forcategories like agricultural assistance, climate and environment, health, peace and security, and trade promotion, dropped from fifty in 2018 to 10 projects this year.
Japan holds the key to unlocking the potential ofthe Indo-Pacificeconomic powerhousesthat can soften China’s dominance in the continent. The Special Strategic and Global Partnership announced in 2015 andthe Asia Africa Growth Corridor announced in 2016 can be potent toolsto strengthen the region’s partnership with Africa.AfterIndia, the emerging power in the region, failed to revive its India-Africa Forum Summitafter postponingthe 2020 Summit indefinitely, the onus of promotingtriangular partnerships between Japan, India and African statessquarely rests on the shoulders of Japan.
In short, Japan is uniquely positioned to reap the dividends of thirty years of existence of TICAD. Amid the global turbulence,Tokyo’s time-tested commitment, depth of development experience, and multilateral approach has the potential to push back China to become the preferred partner of Africa.
