News / Africa
Mugabe meets Kenyan counterpart
29 Aug 2016 at 03:38hrs | Views
President Mugabe met his Kenyan counterpart President Uhuru Kenyatta on the sidelines of the Sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development that ended in Nairobi, Kenya yesterday where they discussed various ways of enhancing economic ties between the two countries.
The major highlight of the meeting was the appreciation of Japan's new development policy for Africa that is in line with Zimbabwe's economic blueprint the Zim-Asset.
Briefing journalists after the meeting that was held at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre, Foreign Affairs Minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi said Japan was of the view that value addition and beneficiation were critical to Africa's development.
Value addition and beneficiation is one of the four clusters of Zim-Asset that seeks to transform the economy by 2018.
As part of Japan's measures for TICAD VI, the Asian giant pledged invest US$30 billion in Africa under public-private partnerships.
Said Minister Mumbengegwi: "Both leaders did appreciate the change of focus on the part of Japan that instead of simply looking at aid in the traditional terms, Japan is now looking at the whole question of industrialisation, beneficiation and value addition and the graduation of African countries from export of raw materials an unprocessed minerals to value added products whether it be in agriculture, whether it be in mining.
"These are areas that both leaders took note of and looked forward to the next three years to see the implementation of this change of focus on the part of Japan.
"I must say, there was a very good meeting of minds on all the issues that they raised relating to relations between our two countries, what we need to do to improve our economic relations.
"Our political relations are excellent, but there was a feeling that we need to do more to step up our economic relations."
Among other things, Minister Mumbengegwi said, the two Heads of State and Government discussed issues relating to terrorism that was now a global challenge.
He said President Kenyatta briefed President Mugabe on the efforts they were making to combat terrorism in East Africa and Kenya in particular.
"They discussed the issue of terrorism," said Minister Mumbengegwi.
"President Kenyatta briefed President Mugabe on the scourge of terrorism in this part of the world and efforts that Kenya and the region are taking to contain this scourge that has developed personified by Al Shabaab.
"It's an issue that they discussed quite at length and what needs to be done regionally and continentally as well as globally."
On the reformation of the United Nations Security Council, Minister Mumbengegwi said: "In terms of global issues, they discussed a number of issues, the United Nations reforms and of course the current summit, how well it is going for Africa and Japan and what the expectations of Africa are?
"It was a very successful meeting indeed.
"They really have a close meeting of minds. Both leaders were very clear that Africa's position remains firm as spelt out in the Ezwulene Consensus and the said Declaration.
"Both leaders did indicate their firm commitment to the common Africa position.
"It was a very warm and very friendly exchange of views over a wide range of issues, bilateral issues, regional issues, continental issues, global issues - it was a very a wide ranging discussion."
Meanwhile, President Mugabe returned home last night.
He was received at the Harare International Airport by his two deputies Vice Presidents Emmerson Mnangagwa and Phelekezela Mphoko, Cabinet Ministers, services chiefs and senior Government officials
The TICAD VI Summit was co-organised by the Government of Japan, the United Nations Office of the Special Adviser on Africa, the United Nations Development Programme, the African Union and the World Bank focused on other key areas such promotion of structural economic transformation through diversification and industrialisation, promotion of resilient health system for quality life and promoting social stability for shared prosperity.
The major highlight of the meeting was the appreciation of Japan's new development policy for Africa that is in line with Zimbabwe's economic blueprint the Zim-Asset.
Briefing journalists after the meeting that was held at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre, Foreign Affairs Minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi said Japan was of the view that value addition and beneficiation were critical to Africa's development.
Value addition and beneficiation is one of the four clusters of Zim-Asset that seeks to transform the economy by 2018.
As part of Japan's measures for TICAD VI, the Asian giant pledged invest US$30 billion in Africa under public-private partnerships.
Said Minister Mumbengegwi: "Both leaders did appreciate the change of focus on the part of Japan that instead of simply looking at aid in the traditional terms, Japan is now looking at the whole question of industrialisation, beneficiation and value addition and the graduation of African countries from export of raw materials an unprocessed minerals to value added products whether it be in agriculture, whether it be in mining.
"These are areas that both leaders took note of and looked forward to the next three years to see the implementation of this change of focus on the part of Japan.
"I must say, there was a very good meeting of minds on all the issues that they raised relating to relations between our two countries, what we need to do to improve our economic relations.
"Our political relations are excellent, but there was a feeling that we need to do more to step up our economic relations."
Among other things, Minister Mumbengegwi said, the two Heads of State and Government discussed issues relating to terrorism that was now a global challenge.
He said President Kenyatta briefed President Mugabe on the efforts they were making to combat terrorism in East Africa and Kenya in particular.
"They discussed the issue of terrorism," said Minister Mumbengegwi.
"President Kenyatta briefed President Mugabe on the scourge of terrorism in this part of the world and efforts that Kenya and the region are taking to contain this scourge that has developed personified by Al Shabaab.
"It's an issue that they discussed quite at length and what needs to be done regionally and continentally as well as globally."
On the reformation of the United Nations Security Council, Minister Mumbengegwi said: "In terms of global issues, they discussed a number of issues, the United Nations reforms and of course the current summit, how well it is going for Africa and Japan and what the expectations of Africa are?
"It was a very successful meeting indeed.
"They really have a close meeting of minds. Both leaders were very clear that Africa's position remains firm as spelt out in the Ezwulene Consensus and the said Declaration.
"Both leaders did indicate their firm commitment to the common Africa position.
"It was a very warm and very friendly exchange of views over a wide range of issues, bilateral issues, regional issues, continental issues, global issues - it was a very a wide ranging discussion."
Meanwhile, President Mugabe returned home last night.
He was received at the Harare International Airport by his two deputies Vice Presidents Emmerson Mnangagwa and Phelekezela Mphoko, Cabinet Ministers, services chiefs and senior Government officials
The TICAD VI Summit was co-organised by the Government of Japan, the United Nations Office of the Special Adviser on Africa, the United Nations Development Programme, the African Union and the World Bank focused on other key areas such promotion of structural economic transformation through diversification and industrialisation, promotion of resilient health system for quality life and promoting social stability for shared prosperity.
Source - Herald
