TICAD Held in Yokohama, Japan:

Focus on African Development for Co-creation

Japanese Employers and Trade Unions Take Part in ILO-UNDRR Event

The 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) took place in Yokohama, Japan, from August 20 to 22, 2025. The conference is led by the Government of Japan in partnership with the United Nations, the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the African Union Commission (AUC), and the World Bank. This year’s meeting brought together representatives from 45 African countries, the co-organizing international bodies, as well as many other international organizations, private companies, and civil society groups.

At the opening ceremony, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who served as Chair, emphasized that ever since TICAD’s launch in 1993, Japan has believed in Africa’s future and has been working together with African partners to face global challenges. He highlighted the main theme of the conference: “Co-create innovative solutions with Africa.” Co-Chair President João Lourenço, Angolan President and Chairperson of the African Union (AU) expressed gratitude for the cooperation of Japan and international organizations, and indicated some priority issues for which Africa is seeking solutions.

The conference’s main theme reflects TICAD’s evolution over more than three decades into a platform that regards Africa not only as a recipient of support, but as a partner in tackling global challenges. The message is clear: all participants are “co-creators” of Africa’s future. Discussions were structured around three core areas: Peace and Stability, Economy, and Society.

A distinctive feature of this TICAD was a series of high-level thematic events, such as a joint session on “disaster resilience and employment” by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR). Its theme was “Jobs and livelihoods, enhancing resilience: A means to address root causes of protracted crises.” The focus was on creating decent work and revitalizing communities in the aftermath of disasters—an urgent issue for Africa and also highly relevant to Japan.

At this event, contributions from Japan’s labor and employer representatives drew particular attention. Ms. Yoshiko Norimatsu, Assistant General Secretary of JTUC-RENGO, presented on the role of trade unions in disaster response, emphasizing that building resilience requires including workers and trade unions as key actors in social dialogue.　Ms. Emiko Nagasawa, Senior Advisor at Keidanren’s Labour Legislative Bureau, shared Japanese business experiences in supporting disaster-affected areas and building recovery networks.

The Conference concluded with the adoption of the TICAD Yokohama Declaration. Participants confirmed their commitment to prioritize actions aligned with the main theme. This also reaffirmed consistency with the African Union’s “Agenda 2063”*. At the closing ceremony, they confirmed that the next meeting “TICAD10” would be held in Africa, and participants expressed their gratitude to Japan.

*Agenda 2063: Formulated in 2013 by the African Union (AU) as Africa’s long-term goals to be achieved over the following 50 years.

<K.K>