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UNIDO Director-General Kandeh K. Yumkella at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan and Japan Association of Corporate Executives in Tokyo

On his 3rd and final day of visit to Japan, UNIDO Director-General Kandeh K. Yumkella spoke at the Foreign Correspondents' Club in Tokyo today to an audience of 50, where he presented the report "Energy for a Sustainable Future", which was prepared by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon’s Advisory Group on Energy and Climate Change (AGECC), which Yumkella chairs. Later in the day, Director-General Yumkella joined the Japan Association of Corporate Executives (Keizai Doyukai) where he addressed 100 members and spoke again on energy, technology transfer, sustainable development and poverty alleviation, carrying UNIDO’s message to the business lobby group. Director-General Yumkella also paid a visit to ITPO Tokyo and met with its Head and staff.

Japan technology transfer to developing world way to cut greenhouse gas emissions, says UNIDO Director-General

UNIDO Director-General, Kandeh K. Yumkella visits METI, MOE and hosts a seminar on Africa at the UNU

On the 2nd day of his visit to Japan, Kandeh K. Yumkella, Director-General of UNIDO met separately in Tokyo with Tadahiro Matsushita, Senior Vice Minister of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI); Nobumori Otani, Parliamentary Secretary of the Environment at the Ministry of Environment (MOE); and Osamu Fujimura; and Senior Vice Minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA).

In the meetings, Director-General Yumkella discussed topics of mutual interest, such as Japan-UNIDO cooperation on environment and energy projects in developing countries, including Sub-Saharan Africa; cooperation on global environment issues, particularly on global energy access and energy efficiency targeting achievement of the MDGs, and related findings of the UN Advisory Group on Energy and Climate Change (AGECC) chaired by the Director-General.

Later in the day, Director-General Yumkella hosted and opened a major seminar on Africa on the subject of “Potential and Business Opportunity in Africa” at the United Nations University (UNU). The seminar attracted 350 participants from the public and private sector, as well as academia in Japan.

Director-General Yumkella delivered a keynote speech titled “Self-sustainability of African Economy from Industrial Perspective”, highlighting the need to move from basic development aid to value added assistance for Africa in order to enable the continent’s economies and peoples to experience lasting employment and growth, with a target to eradicate poverty.

African Union, and also Mitsuya Araki, representing the International Development Journal Co., Ltd. A panel discussion, moderated by Katsumi Hirano of the IDE-JETRO, followed and provided a lively discussion and perspective on the ways to increase business opportunity in Africa. The panel was composed of the keynote speakers, and also included Ambassador Wasswa Biriggwa of Uganda in Japan, also representing the African Diplomatic Corps in Japan; Yasuyuki Fujishima of Sojitz Corporation, and Kazunori Oshiyama of JICA.

A reception held by UNIDO after the seminar allowed participants to interact with Director-General Yumkella, panelists, and UNIDO officials.

UNIDO Director-General, Kandeh K. Yumkella visits Sakai and Kitakyushu

Kandeh K. Yumkella, Director-General of UNIDO, started a 3-day visit to Japan in Sakai, where he toured Sharp Corporation’s “Green Front Sakai” complex and met with Sharp management to learn about latest technologies in photovoltaic and to discuss possibilities for collaboration in developing countries.

On the same day Director-General Yumkella visited Kitakyushu, a city recognized for its advanced industrial and Eco-town complexes, and met with the Mayor Kenji Kitahashi, and other executives of the city. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between UNIDO and Kitakyushu on the day targeting promotion and sharing the experience of Kitakyushu in areas of environmental technology and waste recycling services with developing countries, including Eco-town management and treatment of Persistant Organic Pollutants (POPs).

In Kitakyushu Director-General Yumkella also met with a delegation on environment technologies from Nigeria, led by Dr. Bioudun N. Olorunfemi, Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Environment of Nigeria, taking part in one of the initial programmes covered by the agreement between Kitakyushu and UNIDO.