YOKOHAMA, JAPAN — On the sidelines of the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 9), President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Sr., met with Dr. Takeharu Yamanaka, the Mayor of Yokohama, Japan’s second-largest city. The strategic meeting focused on forging a direct city-to-city partnership between Yokohama and Liberia’s key urban centers.
During the meeting, President Boakai extended a formal invitation to Mayor Yamanaka to visit Liberia, emphasizing the value of in-person engagement to strengthen bilateral ties. Mayor Yamanaka warmly accepted the invitation and expressed significant interest in several key sectors for cooperation:
- Water supply systems to improve access to clean and reliable water.
- Waste management strategies to facilitate the exchange of best practices in recycling and sustainable urban hygiene.
- Port operations to leverage Yokohama’s advanced infrastructure experience for Liberia’s maritime sector.
- Technical knowledge transfer to build local capacity in administration and service delivery.
President Boakai also expressed a desire for Yokohama’s leaders to engage directly with Liberia’s major cities, including the capital, Monrovia, to foster grassroots dialogue and cultural exchange.
Mayor Yamanaka highlighted that this collaboration aligns with Yokohama’s broader commitment to proactive engagement with African leaders. He views such subnational diplomacy as a practical and mutually beneficial way to foster inclusive international relationships.
Both leaders agreed to establish a working framework to move these collaborative areas forward. The anticipated visit by Mayor Yamanaka is poised to mark a new chapter in cooperative city diplomacy, aiming to deliver tangible benefits to both Yokohama and Liberian municipalities. A potential sister-city relationship would be mutually beneficial, as Yokohama, a global leader in urban planning and port operations, could offer its expertise to support Liberia’s ARREST Agenda. In return, the partnership would deepen Japan’s engagement with Africa through people-to-people connections and grassroots diplomacy.
