Special Topics • Partnership Between Africa & Japan • 3

DInterview with H. E. Mr. Ahmed Araïta Ali, Ambassador of the Republic of Djibouti to Japanjibouti PursuingPartnerships with JapaneseBusiness

By Japan SPOTLIGHTAs TICAD VII in Yokohama on Aug. 28-30, 2019 is a good occasion to revisit the issue of Africa-Japan
relations, Japan SPOTLIGHT had the opportunity to interview Djiboutian Ambassador H.E. Ahmed Araïta Ali,
who has been in Japan for a long time and has worked actively to consolidate the partnership between
Japan and Djibouti.
(Interviewed on July 17, 2019)

Introduction
JS: Could you please talk a little bit

about your experience in Japanand Asia?

schools is very exciting; the center of thesystem is the student. Maybe they are
working intensively, but I think that the way
the system is managed is very efficient. Thatis evident in how well developed Japan is,and how Japan is followed all over the world
as an example of individual equality. We aretrying from our side also to build links
between Japanese and Djiboutian
universities. Following March 11, 2011,
I went to Minamisoma to express mysolidarity. The local people did not forget that,and so they invited 10 students last year fromDjibouti to visit a school there. We are trying
step-by-step to build this kind of link.

Ali: Thank you so much for this opportunity.
I have been the ambassador of Djibouti toJapan since 2008. In May-June 2008
I presented my credential to the emperor ofJapan, and since I am also covering nineother countries (South Korea, Singapore,
Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia,
Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand) there
are so many things to do between Asia andAfrica. I started my career as a high school
teacher and then was principal of a highEconomy & History of
H. E. Mr. Ahmed Araïta Ali
school, and advisor at the Ministry of
Djibouti
Education. I was also involved in the Social Fund Project in charge of
JS: Djibouti seems to have very rich tourism
rehabilitation of social infrastructures. Then I became a diplomat andresources. It also enjoys a relatively high GDP per
I am delighted to be in Asia, as it is increasingly becoming an engine
capita in Africa. Could you briefly explain thefor development in Africa, while Africa frequently offers
Djiboutian economy?
opportunities. As the ambassador of Djibouti and as the vice dean of
the African Group, I am trying to build bridges between Japan andAli: Djibouti is in the Horn of Africa. We do not have oil, but theAfrica, and of course between Asia and Africa. My country aims tolocation is like oil for us. We were a French colony for more than 100
work with the Japanese government, private sector and civil society.
years, but since 1977 we have been an independent country. Our
I am learning every day, and I think this is very important. For me,
economy is based on services. We do not have a lot of minerals but
Japan is like an open book, and Asia too.
we are a gateway to 108 million Ethiopians. Our neighbor, Ethiopia,
has no port so we are the port through which everything comes into
JS: As an education expert, how do you see schools
in Japan?
Ethiopia. That means that our economy is almost 80% based onservices – ports, railways, roads and also enterprise zones. We have
Ali: I have visited some high schools in Yokohama and also
one of the biggest enterprise zones in Africa (akin to Singapore)
universities. The curriculum is adapted to reality. We can see thewhere the private sector from Japan, France, the United States andcoexistence between tradition and modernity. The ambiance at
China can be implemented. Agriculture is not so developed but we
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Special Topics 3

have a relationship with the Tokyo University of Agriculture. We do
not have much industry but the enterprise zone is open and small
industries come from all over the world. We have relatively good
economic growth – around 6-7%.
JS: Your economy is service-based, and that might

explain why you enjoy a higher GDP per capita.

Ali: Indeed, and we are also a very safe country. As you know, wehost the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) of Japan, and also we are trying
to develop tourism because Djibouti is like a geological open book.
You have the Rift, the separation between Arabian and African
tectonic plates, located one hour by road from Djibouti city. If you go
to the sea you can dive and touch the plate under the sea. It is verysignificant scientifically and geologically. We are not attracting mass
tourism for now but more scientific tourists who are interested in
tectonic plates, volcanology, and the salt lake from where we export
salt to Japan.
JS: I am inquisitive about Djibouti’s history, inparticular the relationship with France.

Ali: As you know, we were colonized by the French, meaning that our
official languages are French and Arabic. The national languages are
Afar and Somali. So we are surrounded by Ethiopia, Somalia, Eritrea,
and in front of us we have Yemen and Saudi Arabia on the other side.
We are African; we are Arab and French speakers. The French camein the era when Europeans were colonizing the African continent –the British were in Yemen but in Africa were in Somalia and Kenya,
while the only French presence in East Africa was in Djibouti. We
only just gained our independence in 1977 because of our strategic
location – France decided to remain in our country and that is why
we speak French and why our curriculum used to be in French. After
independence, we opted to continue a good relationship with France,
and the French army remains as we have a historical and culturalconnection. France also tries to aid us with development. There is nophilanthropy, but only win-win partnerships like we have with otherpartners.
JS: France is a major tourist country and perhaps

Djibouti has been influenced by the luxury hotels in
France?

Ali: Yes, and culturally also we are Francophone and part of thefamily of French-speaking regions like Québec, Switzerland, Senegal,

and North and Western Africa. We also have in common with France
historical references. For example, Arthur Rimbaud, the famous poet,
lived here for a year, and Jacques Cousteau, the renowned
oceanologist and explorer, was also in Djibouti. So these kinds oflinks consolidate our relationship. The luxury hotels are not French –we have the Sheraton and the Kempinski. We also share a common
approach to gastronomy with France, so when you go to Djibouti you
might feel like you are in a French restaurant.

Djibouti’s Foreign Policy
JS: You mentioned that Djibouti is a gateway to

Ethiopia, so I would like to know a bit about yourforeign policy. Africa has a wide range of countries,
with great diversity. Perhaps this diversity might be
the reason why African countries have achieved
regional alliances. This would seem to be expanding
to the Indo-Pacific area today. How do you feel about
these regional integration efforts in Africa and in the
Indo-Pacific area?

Ali: This is a fundamental question because now the world is
becoming more and more global and similar to a global village.
Africa is very diverse; it has 54 countries with 100 spoken
languages. As the world becomes more global and we sharemultilateralism with Japan in terms of reacting to climate change andso on, Africa is also trying to be organized at regional andcontinental levels. For example, my country is part of theIntergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), a regionalorganization in East Africa established in 1996 for food security as
well as the promotion of trade and military conflict mitigation, and of
the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) RTA
in East-South Africa established in 1994. COMESA is a regional FTA
in the area ranging from Egypt to Zimbabwe.
When we talk about regional integration, Djibouti and Ethiopia areperceived as a showcase. Ethiopia is the most populated country inAfrica after Nigeria. For electricity, for example, Djibouti gets 40% of
its power from Ethiopia (hydroelectricity). Neighboring countries aretrying to work together to share experience and facilities and knowhow, so we are now more and more trying to have these relations
with our neighbors. Also with Japan and Asia. The Indo-Pacific idea
is one of the opportunities that we want to seize because it isconcerned with stability and peace and there is no development
without peace. It can be used for the “blue” economy, which as you
know is an economy that depends on the ocean. We need to get
Japan SPOTLIGHT • September / October 201935

Special Topics 3

JS: You say it will be essential to attract the private

sector. A bottom-up pyramid approach could attract
SMEs and agriculture and small producers to Djibouti
to help small industries. But how do you see thisapproach? Do you still want large companies tocome to Djibouti?

experience from Japan, Singapore and India, because we are in the
Indian Ocean.

Expectations of TICAD
JS: TICAD is a Japanese initiative. How do you

perceive TICAD and what do you expect from TICAD
VII, which will take place in Yokohama in August thisyear?

Ali: This is the most crucial initiative taken since1993, a time when
the rest of the world was not paying much attention to Africa. The
Europeans were looking to Eastern Europe, and despite somenewspapers claiming that Africa is a hopeless continent, Japan
believes otherwise. It has adopted significant initiatives based on
partnership and ownership. That is the singularity of ownership.
Japan focuses on what we want, which is real ownership andpartnership, as decided in 1993. Both Africans and Japanese areworking closely on this issue. Since 1993, Djibouti has been an active
participant in every summit, including this year’s TICAD VII. We are
expecting a lot from TICAD VII because Prime Minister Shinzo Abe
and Foreign Minister Taro Kono have said that it will be based on
business, and we want to attract the private sector of Japan to
Djibouti, to the free zone. For me, it is one of the objectives to havethe private sector of Japan at the trade fair that we will organize in
December in Djibouti. Last year we got more than 40 Japanese SMEs.
That is what we want this year also. We want to participate in side
events and show that the private sector of Japan should be in Africa.
36 Japan SPOTLIGHT • September / October 2019

Ali: Small companies in Japan are big companies in my country. So
I do believe in this pyramid concept as big companies like Toyota and
Mitsubishi are already in Africa distributing cars. It is the duty ofboth governments to bring SMEs into Africa. Djibouti can facilitate
the process, while Japan can help provide a mechanism; small
companies need to attenuate risk. If the risk is high, the profits arehigh. At the governmental level, there is a need to think about themechanism of financing in order to facilitate the entry of thesecompanies, and this would lead to sustainable development for
African countries generally, and Djibouti in particular. This concept
will allow the transfer of competence and capacity building, and will
enhance the relations between the private sector in Japan andDjibouti. We already have the Japan-Djibouti Business Friendship
Association here, and they have already opened a company in theenterprise zone in Djibouti. We want to provide them with land touse, where they can develop some industry. There are of course
Turkish, French and Chinese companies but as ambassador of
Djibouti to Japan my task is to realize this kind of initiative.
JS: Whatever kind of private sector business comes to

Djibouti, human resources development would be a
key issue to meet the needs of economic
development in Djibouti or other African countries.
How can you promote human resources
development? Also, what is the significance of the
ABE Initiative under the TICAD process fordeveloping human resources?

Ali: The ABE Initiative is a vital issue initiative for human resources
development. We need capacity building and transfer of competence,and through the ABE Initiative the students that come to Japan are
facing a language barrier. So we are thinking about establishing
Japanese language schools in Djibouti. The Americans, French andChinese all have cultural societies such as the Confucius Institute in
the Chinese case, but a Japanese presence is lacking. Many students
are going to France and Malaysia but only a few to Japan due to thelanguage barrier. It would be more efficient to have some language
schools or departments in universities where we can teach theSpecial Topics 3

Japanese language to empower students to come to Japan. Students
do not usually stay in Japan; they come back home to Djibouti andcan work for Japanese companies and can act as ambassadors forJapan. This initiative will continue under TICAD VII but needs to beconsolidated by also taking some actions in the country .
JS: In the case of France, Alliance Francais is a very

good language school. So something like that shouldbe created in Japan as well.

Ali: The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has a lot of
young volunteers and some of them speak French. The DjiboutianEmbassy and JICA have been organizing some exchanges andholding trade fairs every December in Djibouti. Last year, somemusicians came from Okinawa and Tokyo, and we had delegations
from France and the US. This provides lots of opportunities to meet
people from all over the world. I think that Alliance Francais is great,but even private schools could be created. One ABE Initiative student
could go back to Djibouti with a young Japanese friend to open alanguage school, for example.

Partnership with Japanese Business
JS: Despite the language barrier, you are working on

attracting Japanese businesses to Djibouti. Do you
know any Japanese companies that havesuccessfully made inroads in Djibouti?

Ali: Toyota has been present for a long time, and also Marubeni. We
also have tourism-related companies and energy-related companies(especially solar). Toshiba is interested in geothermal energy
production in Djibouti, and we have Kiyoshi Kimura, the owner ofJapanese Sushi Restaurants called Sushizanmai, who is planning toopen a restaurant. We also have the Tokushukai Group, a Japanese
private hospital, working on hospital construction projects.
JS: Djibouti has enormous potential for tourism, so

this might help to achieve business relations withJapan.

Ali: Tourism of course, and also the enterprise zone; our currency
has been in parity with the US dollar since 1949 so it can be very
attractive, and also there is no tax in the enterprise zone which isvery attractive to Japanese companies.

JS: How do you expect Djibouti-Japan relations todevelop?

Ali: I am very optimistic because we are sharing so many values withJapan. There is now a monument to celebrate the solidarity between
Djibouti and Minamisoma. The young people who are in touch
through this initiative will continue to develop important relations
with Japan. The presence of the SDF in Djibouti is an example of our
excellent relationship, which will continue to develop for both global
interests and in the interests of the two countries.

Future Relations
JS: Finally, could you tell us what your plans are forpromoting future development? Do you have any
particular plans for contributing to this development?

Ali: We have the Djibouti-Japan Business Association, and at thesame time we have the Djibouti-Japan Parliamentarian Friendship
Association. The presence of the SDF and other factors are helping
to consolidate these existing relations, and we as Ethiopian Airlines
are flying daily to Japan and are closer than ever before. In future wewant to increase exchanges at all levels and continue to forge
stronger links with each other by participating in conferences in eachcountry and promoting various initiatives. We have signed MOUs
with multiple universities, such as Hiroshima University andKumamoto University, while there is one high school in Djibouti
called Fukuzawa, named after the founder of Keio University, which
has more than 10,000 students. So we hope to benefit from Japan’s
experience and know-how and transfer of capabilities, through JICA
and other government agencies. We have some students in Kobe andalso in southern Japan working on geothermal energy, and students
are also coming from Japan to Djibouti.
JS: I didn’t know that Djibouti was a country that

attracted geologists and experts on solar power.
Perhaps you could establish an exchange program
between scientists?

Ali: We are doing this now with the Tokyo University of Agriculture
and some other institutions.

Written with the cooperation of Joel Challender, who is a translator,
interpreter, researcher and writer specializing in Japanese disaster preparedness.

Japan SPOTLIGHT • September / October 201937