In the morning of February 3, DP Deputy President Goshi Hosono met with South African Ambassador Beryl R. Sisulu inside the Diet and exchanged views. The meeting was also attended by International Department Director-General Hiroe Makiyama.
Hosono expressed his appreciation for the Ambassador’s visit and said that when he had visited Durban, South Africa for the 2011 COP17 meeting he had had the impression that many women were playing an active role in South African society. Sisulu said that her country had had a history of ethnic discrimination during apartheid, but that currently 42% of the members of the South African parliament are women and the participation of women has increased. She explained that she had been giving speeches in various parts of Japan about the role of women.
Makiyama stated that in the 2008 TICAD IV (The Fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development) held in Yokohama, she proposed the distribution of the mother and child health handbook which originated in Japan, as studies have been conducted to show its effectiveness in promoting the health and decreasing death of mothers and babies. She explained that thereafter, the book was implemented in various parts of Africa.
The two sides discussed a variety of other issues including science and technology, the import and export of agricultural products, the insurance system, the proportion of overseas students studying in the two countries, rugby and films.
