Remarks	  by	  H.E.	  Mr.	  ESTIFANOS	  Afeworki,	  Ambassador	  of	  the	  State	  of	  Eritrea	  to	  Japan	  and	  Dean	  of	  African	  Diplomatic	  Corps	  on	  the	  Occasion	  of	  the	  Ambassadorial	  Conference	  hosted	  by	  the	  Ministry	  of	  Foreign	  Affairs	  of	  Japan	  -­‐	  November	  30,	  2016	  	  	  Mr.	  Koichiro	  Matsuuara,	  President	  of	  the	  Africa	  Society	  of	  Japan	  (ASJ),	  	  Mr.	  Tesuro	  Yano	  President	  of	  the	  Association	  of	  African	  Economy	  and	  Development	  Japan	  (AFRECO),	  	  Mr.	  Shinchi	  Kitaoka	  President	  of	  Japan	  International	  Cooperation	  Agency	  (JICA)	  Ambassador	  Norio	  Maruyama,	  Director	  General	  of	  the	  African	  Affairs	  Department	  Ministry	  of	  Foreign	  Affairs,	  	  Japanese	  Ambassadors	  to	  African	  countries,	  and	  African	  Ambassadors	  to	  Japan	  present	  	  Honorable	  guests	  and	  colleagues,	  	  	  I	   would	   like	   to	   take	   this	   opportunity	   first	   and	   foremost	   to	   thank,	  salute	   and	   congratulate	   the	   Ambassadors	   of	   Japan	   in	   our	   African	  countries	   and	   the	   African	   Ambassadors	   here	   in	   Tokyo	   who	   made	  2016	   TICAD	   VI	   Nairobi	   Kenya,	   held	   for	   the	   first	   time	   in	   the	   African	  continent,	  a	  successful	  event.	  	  	  	  I	  hope	  the	  same	  continued	  mutual	  effort	  will	  be	  made	  to	  the	  success	  of	  the	  next	  TICAD	  VII	  to	  be	  held	  here	  in	  Japan	  after	  3	  years.	  	  	  The	   Government	   of	   Japan	   has	   once	   again	   shown	   its	   commitment	   in	  support	   of	   business	   partnership	   with	   African	   countries	   in	   2016	  TICAD	  VI	  Nairobi	  Kenya.	  	  	  Therefore,	   realizing,	   the	   cardinal	   role	   investment	   could	   play	   in	  African	   countries	   development	   imperatives:	   such	   as	   in	   agriculture,	  fisheries,	   marine	   resources,	   tourism,	   infrastructure,	   transportation,	  banking,	   insurance,	   financial	   intermediation,	   construction,	   real	  estate,	   free	   zones,	   I	   once	   again	   echo	   in	   this	   reception,	   African	  Diplomatic	   Corps’	   ardent	   call	   to	   the	   Japanese	   Ambassadors	   in	   our	  African	  countries	  to	  urge	  and	  lure	  Japanese	  businesses	  to	  come	  and	  open	   their	   offices	   in	   our	   capitals	   to	   explore	   the	   growing	   investment	  opportunities	  already	  available	  in	  our	  countries.	  	  	  	  1	  The	   world	   economies	   are	   increasingly	   becoming	   multipolar	   with	  their	   last	   frontier	   clearly	   placed	   in	   the	   continent	   of	   Africa	   and	   our	  countries.	  	  	  Africa	   has	   clearly	   regained	   its	   strategic	   importance	   not	   only	   for	   its	  proximity	   to	   the	   major	   flourishing	   Asian	   markets	   but	   also	   as	   a	   fast	  growing	  future	  market	  too.	  	  	  The	   African	   Diplomatic	   Corps	   here	   in	   Tokyo	   have	   high	   expectations	  in	   from	   the	   Japanese	   Ambassadors	   in	   our	   countries	   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	  TICAD	  VII.	  	  	  The	   yardstick	   of	   the	   coming	   TICAD	   VII	   and	   your	   diplomatic	  achievements	   will	   be	   how	   many	   companies	   from	   Japan	   invested	   in	  each	  of	  our	  countries	  by	  2019.	  	  Therefore	  in	  conclusion,	  with	  these	  few	  words	  of	  wisdom,	  allow	  me	  to	   wish	   all	   the	   best	   to	   the	   continued	   building	   of	   solidarity	   and	  friendship	   between	   Japan	   and	   African	   countries	   in	   this	   holiday	  season.	  	  My	  name	  is	  Estifanos	  Afeworki.	  I	  am	  the	  Ambassador	  of	  the	  State	  of	  Eritrea	   to	   Japan	   and	   Dean	   of	   the	   African	   Diplomatic	   Corps	   here	   in	  Tokyo.	  	  Thank	  you	  for	  lending	  me	  your	  ears,	  	  	  	  	  	  2