Africa NOW #118

Issued on 15th December, 2021 by Africa Japan Forum (AJF)«Contents»

pp. 2-15		
Special Topic: Learning from the peasant movement in Mozambique
Since its establishment in 1994, AJF has focused on the issues of agriculture and food in Africa as one of its main activities. Since 2012, we have also been involved in the campaign to stop the ODA project called ‘the ProSAVANA-JBM’, innorthern Mozambique. The Mozambican peasants’ movement, that raised its voice against the ‘ProSAVANA-JBM’, hasopposed its large-scale agricultural development and land grabbing to protect its own sovereignty and right to agricultureand food. Their perspective and practice of farmers’ sovereignty and food sovereignty is an important point for discussion
here not only for the ProSAVANA-JBM but also for future agricultural and food issues in Africa and the world. In thelight of this point, this issue of “Africa NOW” has a special feature titled ‘Learning from the Mozambican peasant movement’
pp .3-9		 Round Table: Review of the activities calling for suspension of ProSAVANA-JBM (Part 1)

by Yoshida Masao, Watanabe Naoko, Takahashi Kiyotaka, Kondo Yasuo, Tsuyama Naoko, Akimoto Yoko,Mozumi Mamoru

The ProSAVANA-JBM, launched in September 2009 with an agreement between the governments of Japan, Brazil andMozambique, was suddenly ‘cancelled’ in July 2020. In Japan, the campaign to stop the ProSAVANA-JBM started in2012, held seminars and international conferences through inviting Mozambican farmers and members of NGOs, carried out field surveys, and has conveyed the voice of Mozambican farmers to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Japan
International Cooperation Agency ( JICA). Active members shared their views on the campaign and discussed lessons
learned from the movement. The Part 2 of this round table will be published in the next issue of “Africa NOW”.
p .10		 ProSAVANA: Agricultural development without farmers by Ikegami Koichi
Ikegami Koichi, a researcher focusing peasants, food sovereignty and other issues around agriculture, in term of foodand the environment, visited the sites of the ProSAVANA -JBM in 2013 and 2015. In the wake of the ‘cancellation’ of theProSAVANA -JBM, Ikegami says that the ‘unstoppable mechanism’ that drove the project and its impact on farmers andrural communities needs to be properly and just examined.
pp .11-12		 Interview with Costa Estevao: Living as a peasant in Mozambique
An interview with Costa Estevao, head of the Union of Peasants of Nampula (UPC-N: União Provincial de Camponeses de Nampula ), the region targeted by the ProSAVANA -JBM, who led the campaign to stop the project. Reflecting
on his life, Estevao talks about the wonderfulness of living as a peasant and the importance of protecting their land andrights to land.
pp .13-15
Mozambique observation notes - ProSAVANA, Natural gas development, FRELIMO

government by Aminaka Akiyo

Aminaka Akiyo, a researcher on Mozambique and other parts of Southern Africa, discusses the current status of largescale natural gas development in northern Mozambique, which has been carried out in parallel with the ProSAVANAJBM. Aminaka argues that the Mozambican government’s plan to use natural gas development as a springboard for agricultural development and industrial transformation in the country is outdated. In addition, she points out a growing
power of the FRELIMO (Frente de Libertação de Moçambiqu e) government in Mozambique.

pp. 16-17
From the ‘International health and COVID-19’ blog post
Adapted from a blog post on ‘International Health and COVID-19’ on the AJF’s website. In this blog post, Inaba Masaki,
AJF’s Director of Global health Program, provides the latest information and policy analysis around COVID-19.
p. 16
WTO ministerial meeting postponed indefinitely due to ‘Omicron’
On 26 November 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO) named a new variant of COVID-19 the ‘Omicron’ anddesignated it as a Variant of Concern (VOC). This led to the indefinite postponement of the World Trade Organization(WTO) Ministerial Conference, which was due to be held in Geneva, Switzerland, from 30 November to 3 December.
Proposals for temporary and partial waiver of COVID-19 related Intellectual Property Right (IPR) protection were expected to be a key topic at this WTO Ministerial. A number of civil society organizations working on health and trade andinvestment issues were planning policy advocacy and actions at the site. On the other hand, there had been calls from civilsociety for the postponement of this less transparent meeting.

1Africa NOW 118

Attachment

p. 17
South Africa’s air network shut down after faithful report of ‘Omicron’
In mid-November, a new variant of COVID-19, the ‘Omicron’, was found in Southern Africa. As a result, some countries
announced travel restrictions to Southern African countries. In response, Department of International Relations and Cooperation of the Republic of South Africa issued a statement on 27 November severely criticizing these restriction. Somedeveloped European countries and other developed countries that have restricted travel to Southern Africa have monopolized vaccines and have created a “vaccine apartheid” gap between them and developing countries.
pp. 18-19
Building the future together with African Kids Club Kansai by Nasu Dagba Junko
p. 19
My thoughts on the establishment of African Kids Club Kansai by Hasegawa Yuta
This is the 11th installment in a series of ‘Essay Relay - African Kids Club’. The essays are written by two people who started
African Kids Club Kansai in the summer of 2021. Nasu Dagba Junko, who is a nursing teacher at a private university inKyoto, is married to a Nigerian man and has a 4 year-old girl, was involved in setting up the African Kids Club Kansai afterparticipating in the African Kids Club at AJF. She hopes that children with African roots can enjoy coming together and continue to learn and think about their. Hasegawa Yuta, who has a 5year-old boy with his Kenyan wife, says that he started theAfrican Kids Club Kansai in the hope that mixed-roots children and their families could have the opportunity to talk to eachother and hear first-hand the voices of their own children as well as those of other children.

Book Review: Oussouby Sacko “Oussouby Sacko’s “I still can’t read Japanese atmosphere (kuki’)“ by Uchino Koumi
p. 20A book review by of the book “Oussouby Sako’s “I still can’t read Japanese atmosphere ‘kuki’ ““Usubi Sako no ‘Mada Kuki
Yomemasenn” in Japanese original title) written by Oussouby Sako. The author of this book, Oussouby Sacko, is originallyfrom Mali, has lived in Japan for many years and is currently the president of Kyoto Seika University. Reflecting on her manyyears in West Africa, the reviewer Uchino Koumi compares Africa and Japan on the distance between people. Reading thisbook, as a Japanese, she laugh at the sense of ‘kuki’ in Japan that demands tacit understanding, ‘You don’t have to tell me, doyou?’. She also says that she misses the warmth of people as ‘Yes, this is how it is in Africa’.
p. 21
In memory of Inaizumi Hiroki by Higa Oki Sayuri
A tribute to Inaizumi Hiroki, a professor at Tokyo University of Agriculture and a former AJF board member, who passed
away on 3 September 2021. Higa Oki Sayuri, who was a student of Prof. Inaizumi at Tokyo University of Agriculture anda former AJF intern, writes about her experience of reading Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s “ Emile or Education (Émile, ou Del’éducation) ” in Prof. Inaizumi’s class. She also reflects the trip to Yaounde, Cameroon and Limpopo Province, SouthAfrica in 2013 with Prof. Inaizumi to research agricultural and rural support models. She also hopes that Inaizumi’s visionand messages will be passing on to next generations.
p. 22-23
Introducing AJF’s interns and volunteers
Each of this year’s eight AJF interns and volunteers (Hirashima Chigusa, Miyazawa Jin, Hiraka Honoka, Takeda Sakura,Goto Ruka, Mihara Nagi, Yamada Kiyoshi, Watanabe Natsuki) share their aspirations and expectations for the AJF.
Back cover2

Afterword (“Hitotsu no musubime to shite” in Japanese) and a record of AJF’s activities

Africa NOW 118

Attachment