JICA President Akihiko Tanaka visited the Republic of Guatemala and the Republic of Colombia from February 20 to 26. In Guatemala, he delivered a lecture at the Diplomatic Academy and witnessed the signing of a partnership agreement with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). In Colombia, he delivered a special lecture by the JICA Chair and witnessed the signing of the minutes of discussions for a technical cooperation project to promote landmine clearance. In each country, he met with government officials and made site visits to cooperative projects.
- Republic of Guatemala
President Tanaka met with President Alejandro Jamatei in the capital, Guatemala City. President Tanaka referred to JICA projects such as the Community Police Project and the Advisor for Promoting Financial Inclusion through Migrant Remittances, and stated that this year marks the 45th anniversary of the Technical Cooperation Agreement with Guatemala and that he hopes to continue to deepen the cooperative relationship in the future. President Jamatei agreed with the President’s remarks and also mentioned cooperation in promoting market access for small-scale agricultural producers.
In addition, President Tanaka gave a lecture on “Human Security and Complex Crises” at the Diplomatic Academy of the Guatemalan Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The lecture was live-streamed to Guatemalan government agencies and was attended by a large audience. President Tada also donated his book and DVD to the Diplomatic Academy.
At the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala, President Tanaka participated in the signing ceremony of a collaboration agreement between JICA and USAID on countermeasures against undocumented immigration based on the Japan-U.S. partnership. President Tanaka expressed his hope that the signing of the collaboration agreement will be an opportunity for JICA and USAID to further strengthen their ties and engage in concrete activities that will contribute to solving issues such as poverty, security, and natural disasters, which are believed to be the root causes of undocumented immigration.
In addition, President Tanaka visited the site where the technical cooperation project “Community Police Project” is producing street murals to improve security in the community, and put his brush in the JICA logo.
- Republic of Colombia
Following this, President Tanaka visited Colombia and met with Vice President Francia Marquez and Minister of Foreign Affairs Alvaro Leyva in Bogota, Colombia, where they discussed cooperation in mine countermeasures and other projects that will contribute to the “Paz Total” initiative of the Gustavo Petro administration to promote peace in light of the 50-year-long conflict in the country, as well as the activities of the Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JOCV) and new assistance needs, particularly in the Pacific coast region. The two countries agreed to further deepen their cooperative relationship as neighbors bordering the Pacific Ocean.
He also witnessed the signing of the minutes of discussions for the newly initiated technical cooperation “Human Resource Development Project to Promote Comprehensive Action on Anti-Personnel Landmines”. Prior to this, the participants visited the Mine Museum to learn about the current state of mine damage in Colombia, observed a demonstration of mine clearance at a mine action site, and operated heavy machinery themselves.
In addition, a special JICA Chair lecture on “The World and Japan: Post-Cold War era” was held at the Japan Center, University of Los Andes. The lecture was broadcast simultaneously throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, and attended by approximately 150 people.
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