ADB urges Japanese companies to invest more for ‘promising returns’ in Africa

There is growing interest in Japan by the government, parliamentarians, mega companies and startups to invest more in Africa, as a delegation from the African Development Bank Group (ADB) found during its recent 5-day visit to Japan.
Led by ADB President Akinwumi Adesina, the high-powered delegation aimed to showcase the enormous investment opportunities on the continent. They met with the top leadership of global mega brands including Mitsui & Co., Ltd., Sumitomo Corporation, Mitsubishi Corporation and Toyota Tsusho Corporation, as well as Japan’s leading business community, the Keizai Doyukai that brings together approximately 1500 business executives. The result of this high-level engagement could see Japan’s net Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to Africa rebound to pre-Covid 19 levels when it amounted to $10 billion, before slipping to $6 billion in 2021. Japanese businesses should invest more in Africa, where investment opportunities and returns are among the highest in the world, Adesina told the Japanese entrepreneurs and investors.
The discussions with the nine top Japanese companies and venture capital funds operating in Africa focused on new technologies related to energy and decarbonization such as next-generation solar power, hydrogen/ammonia, and storage batteries as well as how Japanese technology and innovation can contribute to solving social issues on the continent. The ADB delegation also sought to attract Japanese entrepreneurs to invest more in the agriculture sector. The delegation then held meetings with Japan Bank for International Cooperation and Japanese International Cooperation Agency, which signed a $350 million funding agreement with the Bank to support Africa’s private sector.