Japan's plan to give China a run for its money in Africa

Zawya

3 days ago

Japan is seeking to grow investments in Africa against raising the stakes against China, the continent's leading trading partner.
A Japanese trade official said that Tokyo is supporting its companies to grow their business in Africa and develop trade ties across a continent where has traditionally been seen as a key donor.
For Africa, Japan's push to recalibrate their relations comes at a critical time. Key sectors of interest are critical minerals, base metals and rare earths.
Mobilising private investment has become more pressing following US President Donald Trump's punitive tariffs, slashing of US aid and China's growing influence in Africa, for whom it recently announced tariff-free market access.
Tsujisaka Takako, deputy director at Japan's Ministry of Trade, said at the Kenyan Business Week at the Japan 2025 Expo in Osaka that Tokyo is keen to rival China in Africa.'There are many initiatives to support Japanese companies in promoting their business in every way. First is the Africa-Pacific Private Economic Forum. In Africa, it is held every three years with the participation of high-level officials and private sector representatives to promote and strengthen business ties between Japan and Africa,' she said.
'The launch of the said forum was originally announced by former Prime Minister Abe at the Sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (Ticad VI) in Kenya in August 2016.
She stated that the Japanese government is supporting this through initiatives like the Japan External Trade Organization (Jetro) and the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (Ticad 9) forum, which will take place later in August this year.
The Ticad 9, scheduled for August 20-22, 2025, in Yokohama.
For the tenth year running China is Africa's biggest trading partner, reaching $296 billion in 2024, according to official data, with 60 percent of the volume favouring China.
In 2024, Japan's trade with Africa reached $25 billion, with Japan selling goods worth $3 billion more than it bought from Africa.
Both run triennial summits with Africa (Ticad for Japan and Forum on China-Africa Cooperation for China) and have pledged some $30 billion over their respective three years since the last summits.
Japan though, traditionally sends more development aid to Africa than China.
Japanese companies are increasingly focusing on sectors like manufacturing, critical minerals, base metals, car exports, as well as introducing technologies like preventive medical care.
A key area of focus is infrastructure development in Africa, with Japanese companies and financial institutions providing capital and expertise in sectors like energy, transportation, and telecommunications.
Japan's net external assets reached a record high in 2024 as its investors and companies continued to load up on holdings abroad.
So far, only a trickle of that has reached Africa, with the continent receiving about 0.5 percent of Japan's foreign direct investment, something Tokyo is keen to improve on.'Kenya ranks top in Africa as the country with the largest number of Japanese companies. There are more than 120 Japanese companies doing business in Kenya and we are putting in place initiatives to invest more in Africa,' Ms Takako said.
Kenya's Trade Cabinet Secretary Lee Kinyanjui pledged ease of doing business and policies, infrastructure and legal frameworks that facilitate seamless operations for both local and international investors.'The African Continental Free Trade Area provides a gateway to an African market of an estimated 1.4 billion people and a combined nominal GDP of $2.78 billion as reported by the International Monetary Fund in 2024. By investing in Kenya, Japanese businesses stand to benefit from an expansive market,' the minister said.
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