The continent’s development hopes heighten as the fifth edition of TICAD process is billed for Japan from June 01 to 03.

Keeping Africa’s current economic growth on a stable path and extending the benefits to all strata of development. This is the key challenge that will thread through discussions at the fifth edition of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD V) billed for Japan’s Yokohama from June 01 to 03 this year. The confab will equally mark 20 years of the TICAD process and incidentally 50 years of the Organization of African Unity, the predecessor of the African Union.

At TICAD V, representatives from Japan, African countries, international organisations, donor countries, the private sector and civil society will produce an action plan based on three main interrelated themes; “Robust and Sustainable Economy”, Inclusive and Resilient Society”, and “Peace and Stability.” In concrete terms, conference participants will prioritise infrastructure and human resources development as well as private sector investment as important prerequisite for Africa’s economic growth. In the same vein and more importantly, they will discuss ways to support initiatives of African countries to ensure peace and stability particularly in the area of conflict management, cross border security, terrorism and piracy and good governance. As underscored by Tsutomu Arai, Ambassador of Japan to Cameroon, the challenges remain substantial for the continent.