Politics

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attends the sixth Tokyo Conference on African Development, held in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi in August 2016.
International relations

Japan urges African startup tie-ups in Belt and Road countermove

Tokyo seeks corporate help at conference as China pours billions into continent

27 August 2019
A construction site on the outskirts of Lagos, Nigeria. Japan plans to promote transparent, high-quality infrastructure projects in Africa. 
International relations

Japan extends loans and scholarships in tug of war over Africa

Tokyo challenges Beijing's Belt and Road with $2.8bn in loans

12 August 2019
China has been aggressively investing in African infrastructure projects, including Kenya's Northern Corridor railway project.
Politics

Japan's trade insurance to cover full African investment

Government pushes infrastructure exports as China races ahead

29 April 2019
David Malpass, right, newly appointed President of the World Bank Group: The leadership continues to be monopolized by Western representatives. 
Opinion

Time for emerging Asian powers to help set global rules

West must accept rise of China, India and other states or risk growing clashes

18 April 2019
People walk in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi. The African Union is a $2.5 trillion economy that is continuing to grow. (Photo by Keiichiro Asahara)
Economy

Japan's one-stop shop for Africa projects aims to match China

Permanent public-private council will cordinate investment in world's 'last frontier'

7 March 2019
Angola relies heavily on oil exports and needs to upgrade its ports.
Economy

Japan edges in on Belt and Road with $643m for Angolan port

Trading house Toyota Tsusho and export credit agency JBIC team up on project

9 January 2019
Angola's President Joao Lourenco and China's President Xi Jinping shake hands before their bilateral meeting in Beijing in September.
Economy

Angola looks beyond China for aid and investment

Technology transfer and diversifying economy are key, says energy minister

15 December 2018
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, left, and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at Abe's official residence in Tokyo in October
Opinion

The alternative to Chinese debt for Africa from Japan and India

'Growth Corridor' can offset excessive dependence on Belt and Road borrowing

23 November 2018
Officers at a police station in Gifu Prefecture on May 21 examine an elephant tusk that was confiscated after being traded illegally via a flea market app. 
Economy

Japan a weak link in international ivory trade ban

Domestically available items are smuggled to China, where demand is strong

12 October 2018
A China-built rail link between Ethiopia and Djibouti opened in 2016. There are concerns about how deeply indebted Djibouti is to China.
International relations

Africa aid should factor debt sustainability, Japan says

Foreign Minister Kono stresses transparency in swipe at Beijing

7 October 2018
At the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, attended by leaders from 53 African nations, Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged to offer $60 billion in economic support to the continent over the next three years.
Belt and Road

Beijing insists its generosity over Belt and Road is genuine

President Xi points to international contribution as others call it 'debt trap'

9 September 2018
Djibouti's President Ismail Omar Guelleh and China's President Xi Jinping shake hands before their bilateral meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on September 2.
International relations

Djibouti eager to be a key link in China's Belt and Road

Foreign minister is aware of the danger of a debt trap, calls level 'manageable'

6 September 2018
A freight train on the Standard Gauge Railway line constructed by China Road and Bridge Corp. and financed by the Chinese government in Kenya's coastal city of Mombasa.
International relations

China pledges another $60bn to Africa in bid to win allies

Xi Jinping says debt held by continent's poorest nations will be waived

4 September 2018
Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, talks with South African counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa during a four-nation tour of the continent in July. 
International relations

China steps up courting of Africa ahead of summit

Promise of economic aid tied to Belt and Road initiative

27 August 2018
A street vendor sells mangos in Kathmandu, Nepal. The country's first-ever economic census aims to get an accurate picture of the business landscape.
International relations

Japan to help Asia and Africa modernize economic data

Tokyo taps soft-power assistance as alternative to China's infrastructure projects

10 August 2018
Chinese President Xi Jinping shakes hands with his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, during a press conference in Kigali, Rwanda, on July 23. 
International relations

India and China woo Africa ahead of BRICS summit

Narendra Modi and Xi Jinping bear gifts for resource-rich nations

24 July 2018
Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force provided training to local troops in Cambodia as "capacity-building support."
Politics

Japan expands peacekeeping support in Africa and ASEAN

Medical and construction training aims to counter rising Chinese influence

2 July 2018
Artisanal miners work at a copper-cobalt mine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
International relations

'Resource nationalism' clouds China's Africa ambitions

World's second-largest economy may find it harder to get what it needs to grow

23 June 2018
Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, shakes hands with Swaziland's King Mswati III in 2015. The country now known as eSwatini has become Taiwan's last formal diplomatic partner in Africa.
International relations

China verges on luring all of Africa away from Taiwan

Beijing uses economic leverage to cultivate allies against American pressure

18 June 2018
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen speaks in Taipei after Burkina Faso ended diplomatic relations on May 24. Four countries have stopped recognizing the island over her two years in office.
International relations

Burkina Faso only the latest to freeze Taiwan out

Chinese yuan diplomacy blamed for narrowing Taipei's African allies to one

25 May 2018
Workers put the finishing touches on a railway in Kombolcha, in northern Ethiopia. The line is being built by Turkish contractor Yapi Merkezi. (Photo by Akihiro Sano)
International relations

Turkey jockeys with China for influence in Africa

From railways to diplomacy, Ankara looks to extend its geostrategic reach

12 May 2018
A woman shows her finger after voting in national elections in the Philippines. The Southeast Asian nation ranks above the global average in women in parliament.
Politics

Once a world leader, Asia now trails in women lawmakers

Philippines, Laos and China among best in terms of females in parliament

8 March 2018
ESM Managing Director Klaus Regling speaks to the Nikkei Asian Review in Tokyo on Feb. 22. (Photo by Rie Ishii)
Interview

Emerging markets face credit challenges in tightening cycle, ESM head warns

Asian, Latin American and African economies are vulnerable, says Klaus Regling

23 February 2018
Soldiers of China's People's Liberation Army stand on a ship sailing off from a military port in Zhanjiang, Guangdong province on July 11, 2017.
International relations

Japan's military chief warns on China naval expansion

New Indian Ocean bases will support military activity in region

19 January 2018
Transport trucks cross the bridge connecting China and North Korea.
North Korea Crisis

Forty-nine nations breached North Korea sanctions: report

US think tank lists China, Malaysia, Japan as enablers of illicit trade

8 December 2017