At this year’s 8th Tokyo International Conference on African Development, or TICAD 8, Japan pledged $30 billion in aid over 3 years to the African continent.
Though expert observers said the figure does not represent a step change in Japan’s spending, it is a $10 billion increase from the previous set of pledges at TICAD 7 in 2019.
The move has been described as a bid to counter Chinese influence, but Tokyo insists it is not in competition. Instead, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida described Japan's commitment as a contribution from “a partner growing together with Africa.”