TICAD8 declaration ignites hope to Africa

The Eighth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 8) has resolved to continue promoting Africa's development as the organisation approaches its 30th anniversary in 2023.

This resolution was made during a summit that brought together the Heads of State and Government, African Union Member States, and Japanese delegations, as well as representatives of TICAD co-organizers, namely the United Nations, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the World Bank, and the African Union Commission (AUC), held in Tunis, Tunisia, from August 27 to 28.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has had unprecedented economic, political, environmental and social impacts globally. The pandemic highlighted the urgency and importance of integration, solidarity and “investment in people” which will enhance the significant potential of Africa as a driving force of global growth,” expounded the statement.

“As the global community witnessed the human security crisis caused by the pandemic, the concept of human security needs to be upheld more than ever. The pandemic has reminded us of the value of “people” on which the TICAD process attaches great importance,” it also stated.

The meeting also noted that the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent sociopolitical and environmental shocks had highlighted the need to address these and other emerging challenges in the current socioeconomic system, as well as to promote public-private partnerships for Africa's development, with the goal of achieving resilient and sustainable societies, as well as long-term peace and stability.

The statement says: “To this end, we reiterated the importance of the Three Pillars in this Declaration. To tackle the challenges and build on long-time efforts to achieve the AU Agenda 2063 and the SDGs, TICAD 8 recognized the fundamental value of consistent, more open, transparent and inclusive multilateralism.”

“Consequently, we renew our commitment to work together to maintain international peace and stability based on the principle that the centrepiece of the international order is international law, including the UN Charter, and respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries. We also emphasize that all countries must seek peaceful resolution of disputes in accordance with international law; we take good note of the initiative of a Free and Open Indo-Pacific as announced by Japan at TICAD VI in Nairobi, Kenya,” adds the statement.

Among the stated Three Pillars is the realisation of structural transformation for long-term economic growth and social development. They emphasise that private sector investment is critical for Africa's inclusive and sustainable economic growth and development and that it remains an important partner in Africa's transformational process.

“Following TICAD 7, private companies became official partners of TICAD with the Public Private Business Dialogue convened between Japan and Africa, which is a testament of the highest consideration attached to private sector development in Africa and Japan,” it states.

The meeting also reaffirmed the importance of Japan-Africa cooperation in encouraging investment, promoting private-sector innovation through collaboration and technology transfer between Japanese and African companies, and strengthening industrial human resource development.

The delegates agreed that this was necessary in order to accelerate structural transformation for inclusive and sustainable growth in Africa, as well as its efforts to achieve Agenda 2063 and the SDGs while overcoming challenges such as rising food and energy prices.

“We support initiatives to strengthen mutually beneficial public-private partnerships that facilitate economic diversification in Africa, such as the Japan Business Council for Africa and the Japan-Africa Infrastructure Development Association. These partnerships enhance the African business environment and support Africa’s priorities of economic transformation and diversification,” the statement said of the resolutions.

The forum also recognised start-ups and private companies, as well as youth and women entrepreneurship, as emerging driving forces in resolving Africa's social challenges.

Says the statement: “We recognize the importance of the Japanese government's efforts to further strengthen and broaden technical assistance and a wide variety of financial instruments to enhance these players in order to further enhance their transformative roles. In this regard, we note with appreciation the efforts towards the creation of a new fund to promote investment in Africa,”

“And, we also welcome the African Sovereign Investors Forum (ASIF), which aims at improving investment attractiveness on the continent and mobilization of capital for the benefit of structuring projects and we encourage the acceleration of impact investments to help solve various social challenges through innovative means and to create an environment conducive to an innovation-friendly ecosystem.”

According to the statement, the meeting also emphasises the importance of investing in Africa's digital transformation and ICT infrastructure, including data infrastructure; implementing digital industrial policies; and developing appropriate skills to engage in the digital economy, with the goal of accelerating innovation through collaboration between Japanese and African businesses.

“We urge enhanced support from the international community for digitization of African economies, as a means to unlocking the continent’s growth potential and creating employment opportunities for its population. We will strive towards addressing the digital divide, ensuring access to affordable technology for citizens and encouraging investment, “stated the forum’s resolution, while also calling for international cooperation to strengthen the existing mechanism for the recovery of stolen assets and to take the necessary measures to prevent such illegal practices, which are undermining African sustainable development efforts, in accordance with the Addis Ababa Action Agenda (AAAA) of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development,” says the statement.

Also noteworthy was the recognition that, despite historically accounting for only 3% of cumulative global CO2 emissions, climate change and extreme weather conditions disproportionately affect Africa, with severe economic, social, and environmental consequences for its people.

“As a way forward, the forum also appreciates the steady implementation of the Yokohama Plan of Actions 2019 (YPA), and the delegates committed to continue updating in an inclusive manner YPA, by reframing it to TICAD 8 Tunis Plan of Actions. We reaffirm that initiatives and actions under TICAD Plan of Actions will be aligned with African and international frameworks such as AU Agenda 2063 and the SDGs,” says the statement.

It was also decided that TICAD 9 would be held in Japan in 2025, with a ministerial meeting preceding it in 2024.

“We express our deep gratitude to His Excellency Mr. Kais Saied, President of the Republic of Tunisia, for co-chairing and hosting TICAD 8 in Tunis. We further express our sincere appreciation to the Government and people of Tunisia for the warm welcome and hospitality extended to the participants of TICAD 8,” said the statement, wrapping the resolution of the Tunis meet.