BY JOHN HOUANIHAU
A dialogue to strengthen the economic development cooperation between the Solomon Islands and Japan was held on 20, October 2022 at the Heritage Park Hotel in Honiara.
The series of sessions were centered on the following objectives, the Solomon Islands Government’s (SIG) Macroeconomic situation and development, the national development strategy ‘2016-2035’ implementation, Japan’s official development assistance projects, and other related medium development plans of the SIG.
Minister for the Ministry of National Planning and Development Coordination, Honourable, Rexon Ramofafia thanked the government and the people of Japan for their continuous friendship, support, and partnership over the past years.
Honourable, Rexon said the dialogue presents the two countries with the opportunity to discuss issues of mutual interest and concern and to map out strategic directions for partnership and development cooperation over the coming years.
He said that Japan has played a very important role in the progress and improvement of some sectors in the Solomon Islands.
“At this juncture, I wish to acknowledge Japan’s past and ongoing economic support in the social sector in improving the standard and sustainable economic development into the infrastructure, improvement of social service, environmental conversation, climate change and also waste management.
“I wish to further recognize that Japan’s priority areas of assistance in the Solomon Islands (SI) in two broad areas, particularly in areas of forthcoming probability in building and maintaining basic economic infrastructures such as transport, electricity energy, water supply, as well as provision of training on human resources in Forestry, Fishery, Health sector, and Japan support in climate change and natural disaster risk management and solid waste management.
“Let me also remind us of the SI Aid management and development cooperation policy and the partnership framework for an effective development cooperation derived from the Paris Declaration on Aid effectiveness which sets the framework towards developing genuine and mutually accountable partnership in development cooperation,’’ said Ramofafia.
Meanwhile, the Japanese Ambassador to the Solomon Islands His Excellency MIWA Yoshiaki said his mission is to further the relationship between the two countries, Solomon Islands and Japan.
“I am very happy to meet you today to discuss our cooperation. I understand that our cooperation is growing from strength to strength. I also notice that much has been done to develop our relationship, so it is my mission to further the relationship between the two countries, Solomon Islands and Japan,’’ said His Excellency Yoshiaki.
The Japanese Ambassador to the Solomon Islands said that he had realized in the past years that the Solomon Islands has great potential with many resources and how to utilize those resources is one of the discussions the stakeholders have discussed during the dialogue.
“In our development cooperation, we have contributed to building the infrastructure which is very important to develop your industries. Our cooperation is not constrained to infrastructure construction only, but capacity building, and technology transfer that is also very important,’’ he said.
He said that the Solomon Islands and Japan need long-term cooperation and long-term strategies.
“So we have to know each other, what kind of development strategy do you have and what kind of cooperation strategy should we have. We have to coordinate, otherwise, our cooperation would not be consistent,’’ His Excellency Yoshiaki.
