It was a sharp contrast in public relations efforts compared to his tone-deaf approach to dealing with neighboring China and South Korea. He managed to balance offers of financial aid, technology transfer and investments with winning over public opinion. In his approach to Africa, Abe seems to have hit all the right diplomatic notes since taking office just over a year ago. That makes it all the more urgent for resource-poor nations like Japan to win over as many commodities-rich nations as possible. The surge in resource nationalism is only expected to strengthen worldwide. Indonesia’s recent decision to ban exports of nickel and bauxite, for instance, has hit Japan’s stainless steel producers particularly hard. It’s all about resourcesĬlearly, securing resources in the longer-term is a priority for Japan, not least due to struggles to meet its energy needs after the shutdown of all 50 of its nuclear reactors since the March 2011 earthquake at Fukushima.Īmid growing geopolitical uncertainties, Japan also faces a challenge of meeting its other commodities needs. Japan has also promised to train African experts on cutting-edge technology and engineering. This amount included $14 billion in official development assistance as well as $6.5 billion to support infrastructure projects across the continent. Meanwhile, last summer, Tokyo promised Africa a total of $32 billion in public and private funding. On the financial front, the visit brought announcements by the Japanese government to double the total amount of low interest loans to the continent to $2 billion over a five year period, having promised $1 billion in 2012.
SPOTLIFE ASIA JOBS FREE
But it also served the promotion of Japanese sporting business interests, not least by distributing free Asics sneakers. The official point of meeting African athletes was to promote Tokyo’s upcoming 2020 Summer Olympic games. In Ethiopia, Abe not only delivered a speech at the African Union’s Addis Ababa headquarters, but he also made a point to meet with Ethiopian athletes, including marathon legend Abebe Bikila’s son. The Japanese prime minister also made sure he met with the Ivorian soccer team and Mozambique’s women basketball league.
Of the countries Abe visited, Cote d’Ivoire is a center of commerce in its region and Mozambique is rich in natural gas and other assets. It was the first such visit by a Japanese premier in eight years, in contrast with the multiple marathon trips by Chinese presidents during the same period. Japan’s latest effort concluded recently with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit to Africa in early January 2014. Instead, the race is on for Japan and China to woo Africa’s public opinion at large - not just the favors of investor and leadership class. Unlike in the centuries past, however, there is no coercion or bloodshed. This time around, the West is content to stand on the sidelines as Asia’s biggest powers duke it out to secure resources in the world’s final economic frontier.
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