By Shipra Prakash
30 MAY 2008 [MEDIAGLOBAL]: The Fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) took place in Yokohama, Japan from 28 to 30 May.
Attending the event were more than 40 African Heads of State. The co-organizers of the TICAD were the Government of Japan, the United Nations office of the Special Adviser on Africa, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the World Bank.
The conference addressed three crucial areas — economic growth, human security and climate change.
Africa’s economic growth rate stands at six percent. Richard Leonard of the TICAD/UNDP Africa Bureau told MediaGlobal that “economic growth has certainly improved and one of TICAD’s goals is to make it more sustainable.”
Participants agreed that economic growth in Africa can be accelerated by expanding trade and investment. Japanese investment in Africa has grown significantly, to $203 million in 2004.
But President Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania, who spoke on behalf of the African Union, stated that the Japanese government needs to work harder to persuade businessmen that Africa is a safe place to invest in. He said that “the perceived notion of risks about doing business with Africa or in Africa today is more a matter of the unforgotten past history than what is actually occurring on the ground in Africa today.”
However, Prime Minister Yasuo Fakuda, Prime Minister of Japan, noted in the opening session of the TICAD that “activities by private companies are crucial for African growth. That is another reason why it is imperative for us to improve infrastructure. Japanese companies will have greater interest in Africa as infrastructure is enhanced.”
“For that reason, the Japanese government will implement measures to promote the activities of Japanese activities in Africa while it improves African infrastructure,” he added.
On Friday, Fakuda pledged that Japanese official development assistance loans to assist in the development of sectors such as infrastructure and agriculture would amount to $4 billion, and to extend financial support to $2.5 billion.
Human security was another priority at the TICAD. Nicholas Gouede, Programme Specialist at the TICAD/UNDP Africa Bureau, told MediaGlobal, “I believe that peace is of paramount importance for trade and investment to prosper.”
The largest UN peacekeeping operation is in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), long a victim of internal conflict. Although the country’s first free and fair elections in 40 years were held in July 2006, Congo still faces challenges. According to the Brussels-based International Crisis Group, “Over 1,000 people die each day from conflict-related causes, mostly disease and malnutrition but ongoing violence as well.”
The DRC has immense economic resources. But these resources are not used to their fullest potential. According to the Revenue Watch Institute, while mining accounted for 16 percent of the DRC’s gross domestic product in 2006, the failure to open government revenues and spending to public scrutiny limits the growth of a transparent and accountable mineral sector.
Somalia is another country facing large-scale security challenges. This month, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) stated that drought, soaring food prices and a devalued currency has left millions of Somalis hungry. Andebrhan Giorgis, Senior Advisor of the Africa Program at the International Crisis Group, told MediaGlobal, “Drought is the immediate cause, but the real cause of the food crisis is war in Somalia.”
“In Somalia, there has been war for 17 years which has disrupted economic life. It denies people the chance to farm their land,” he added.
FAO’s Somalia Adviser, Cindy Holleman said in a statement that the number of Somalis fleeing the capital, Mogadishu, has increased by 20 percent to 855,000 since January.
But Jean-Marie Guehenno, Under Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, expressed caution on the issue of the deployment of a peacekeeping force in Somalia at a press conference on the 60th anniversary of United Nations peacekeeping on Thursday.
“We must not succumb to the illusion that military deployment could substitute for a solid political process,” he said.
The need for “a solid political process” is what the UN Security Council will reiterate when they embark on a 10-day trip to Africa from June 1. The Security Council will visit Chad, Cote d’Ivoire, the DRC, Nairobi and Sudan.
Council envoys will meet with leaders of Somalia’s Transitional Federal Government (TFG), the opposition and members of Somali civil society and address the security situation in Somalia.
Without progress in the security situation in Somalia, the food crisis in the country cannot be addressed satisfactorily. South African Ambassador Dumisani Kumalo, Permanent Representative of South Africa to the UN, told MediaGlobal, “Somalia faces these issues but the focus should be on the political process and security on the ground.”
“Humanitarian organizations can operate if security is better,” he said.