Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledged Sunday to provide ¥100 billion in humanitarian and development assistance over five years to help stabilize Africa's conflict-torn Sahel region.
"The key to realizing peace and stability is the effort and will of Africa itself to solve conflicts. Japan wants to support Africa's will through human resource development and by enhancing its social systems," Abe told a session of the fifth Tokyo International Conference on African Development in Yokohama.
The ¥100 billion aid package, which is part of the ¥3.2 trillion in funding from Japan announced Saturday, is to be used for strengthening social systems such as education, health and food, Abe said.