Remarks	   made	   by	   H.E.	   Mr.	   ESTIFANOS	   Afeworki,	   Ambassador	   of	   the	   State	   of	  Eritrea	  to	  Japan	  and	  Dean	  of	  The	  African	  Diplomatic	  Corps	  (ADC)	  on	  the	  8th	  in	  the	   TICAD	   Seminar	   Series	   “Toward	   TICAD	   VI:	   Issues	   and	   Perspectives”	  organized	  by	  the	  World	  Bank	  Tokyo	  Office	  July	  13,	  2016:	  	  	  Honorable	  participants	  Excellencies	  	  Ladies	  and	  Gentlemen	  	  	  Africa	  and	  Japan	  have	  entered	  a	  very	  crucial	  period	  of	  building	  a	  new	  stage	  of	  their	  relations	   through	   the	   TICAD	   process.	   Overseas	   Development	   Assistance	   (ODA)	   is	  going	  to	  give	  way	  to	  trade	  and	  investment	  soon.	  	  All	  the	  panelist	  of	  this	  seminar	  have	  clearly	  amplified	  this	  today.	  	  	  Japan	  has	  been	  a	  key	  catalyst	  in	  the	  creation	  of	  the	  tiger	  economies	  of	  Asia	  as	  well	  as	  in	  the	  BRICS	  in	  the	  last	  decades.	  	  As	   we	   all	   know,	   arguments	   in	   favor	   of	   investment	   in	   these	   economies,	   especially	  after	  the	  end	  of	  the	  cold	  war,	  were	  based	  broadly	  on	  assumptions.	  First,	  evaluation	  of	   BRICS	   economies	   gained	   its	   optimism	   from	   factors	   which	   were	   not	   there	   -­‐	   like	  macroeconomic	   stability,	   adequate	   institutional	   settings,	   and	   sufficient	   skilled	  manpower	   and	   so	   on.	   Second,	   with	   capital	   and	   technology	   at	   their	   disposal,	   the	  developed	   countries	   like	   Japan	   were	   very	   eager	   to	   tap	   into	   the	   big	   new	   market	  opportunities	  that	  these	  countries	  offered.	  The	  issue	  of	  the	  BRICS	  was	  viewed	  from	  the	  perspective	  of	  “demand”	  by	  the	  developed	  countries.	  	  Therefore,	   without	   losing	   sight	   of	   the	   developed	   and	   emerging	   economies	   in	   Asia	  and	  its	  reflection	  and	  influence	  to	  the	  economies	  of	  African	  countries,	  it	  is	  practical	  to	   assume	   the	   prevailing	   wind	   of	   change	   influencing	   global	   and	   Asian	   economic	  climate	  is	  also	  equally	  favorable	  and	  the	  same	  trend	  if	  not	  the	  same	  projection.	  	  The	   regional	   picture	   is	   not	   uniformly	   upbeat.	   Manufacturing	   activities	   did	   not	  feature	   prominently	   in	   FDI	   flows	   to	   Africa	   in	   the	   past.	   Therefore,	   a	   prudent	  navigation	   of	   the	   TICAD	   process	   is	   not	   only	   imperative	   at	   this	   stage	   but	   should	   be	  followed	   with	   a	   much	   more	   vigorous	   and	   focused	   efforts	   and	   implementation	  activities	   to	   achieve	   a	   good	   result	   for	   the	   mutual	   economic	   advancement	   of	   Africa	  and	   Japan.	   In	   the	   coming	   few	   years	   the	   focus	   for	   TICAD	   will	   be	   industrialization,	  health	  and	  social	  stability.	  	  Identification	   of	   tangible	   needs	   and	   requirements	   which	   can	   enable	   our	   African	  countries	   to	   get	   a	   meaningful	   foothold	   in	   the	   global	   market	   place	   in	   general	   and	   the	  growing	   Asian	   market	   in	   particular	   -­‐	   in	   view	   of	   the	   ideal	   location,	   rich	  natural/human	  resources	  and	  business	  opportunities	  of	  the	  continent,	  is	  more	  than	  any	  time	  important	  now.	  	  1	  	  Prospects	   for	   growth	   of	   FDI	   inflows	   into	   Africa	   are	   good.	   Can	   Africa	   play	   a	   role	   of	  producing	  and	  manufacturing	  goods	  and	  products	  for	  export?	  Can	  Japan	  enterprises	  play	  a	  role?	  	  It	  needed	  an	  answer,	  more	  than	  any	  time,	  now.	  	  	  I	  am	  confident	  and	  sure	  the	  panel	  today	  has	  given	  many	  pertinent	  answers	  to	  these	  questions.	  Let	  me	  just	  express,	  on	  behalf	  of	  the	  African	  Diplomatic	  Corps	  and	  myself	  our	  gratitude	  and	  thanks	  to	  the	  panelists	  and	  the	  World	  Bank	  Tokyo	  Office.	  	  It	  is	  our	  high	  expectation	  for	  the	  World	  Bank	  and	  the	  African	  Development	  Bank	  to	  play	  their	  continued	   positive	   role	   by	   facilitating	   practical	   dialogue	   that	   would	   lead	   into	  concrete	  tie-­‐ups	  between	  businesses	  of	  our	  counties	  in	  Africa	  and	  Japan	  before	  and	  after	  TICAD	  VI.	  	  Thank	  you	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  2