The Japanese Ambassador to Cameroon, H.E Tsutomu Arai, has once again pledged Japan’s commitment as a partner in the development process of Cameroon.

He made the commitment in his address, December 5, during celebrations to commemorate his country’s National Day in Yaounde.

Speaking to personalities present, H.E Arai said: “Let me underline that there will be no change in our deeply-rooted approach, as far as our official development assistance is concerned, in which the most important remain the reduction of poverty and economic development and cultivating a sense of ownership among the people concerned and encouraging self-help efforts”.

Presenting a balance sheet of development projects carried out in Cameroon, so far, he said, in the domain of education, since 1997, the Government of Japan has spent circa CFA 65 billion for the construction of 1,533 classrooms in 279 schools around the national territory.

As far as agriculture is concerned, his country has provided Cameroon with technical assistance to boost rice farming and continues their cooperation in this important domain as well as harnessing human resources.

As far as providing potable water is concerned, the Governments of Japan and Cameroon, alongside UNICEF, had signed an agreement for the financing of a project aimed at ameliorating access to potable water and promoting sanitary conditions in the Far North Region, which, in recent times, has been hit by floods and terrorist attacks.

Before the signing of this agreement, a Japanese offer had enabled financing of the 5th phase of the Rural Hydraulic Project which will lead to the construction of 57 reservoirs, each equipped with a manual pump.

To make the living standards of Cameroonians better, in May this year, through an exchange of notes between the Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kishida and Cameroon’s Minister of Economy, Nganou Djoumessi, Japan donated CFA 3 billion to Cameroon.

The Nippon authorities are currently working on a green strategy for Africa, meantime, contributing to the efforts of their Cameroonian counterparts in preserving the forests of the Congo Basin in with other partners.

The grandiose celebrations were attended, among others, by members of the Diplomatic corps in Cameroon and members of Government.