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The Embassy of Japan in Kenya
will celebrate its 50th birthday in a few days. On June 1st, 1964, our consulate general was upgraded
to an embassy after the establishment of Japan-Kenya diplomatic relations in
December 1963. Since then, our embassy
has received a warm welcome and close cooperation from people and the
Government of this country. At this critical
juncture, let me invite you to reflect upon the history of our friendship.
Japan-Kenya Interaction started
at the beginning of the 20th century
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| The Sea Lane Chart between Japan and Kenya in the Early 20th Century
(“Umi,” Osaka Commercial
Shipping Company, April 1926)
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The
interaction between our two countries has a long history. The alleged first recorded visit by a Japanese
national to Kenya dates back to 1903 when an explorer, Mr. Naokichi Nakamura,
visited the same port.
Our bilateral commercial
interaction became quite active as well. A Japanese cotton trading company Nihon Menka
opened its branch office in 1919 in Mombasa. Then, in 1926, Osaka Commercial Shipping
Company opened a regular monthly steamship line between a Japanese port city
Kobe and Durban in South Africa via Mombasa. This boosted economic activities between Japan
and Kenya significantly.
Japan established
its Embassy in Kenya in June 1964
As the
bilateral interaction became quite vibrant, the Japanese Government opened its
consulate office in Mombasa in 1932. In
less than six months after Kenya’s independence, Japan opened its embassy in Downtown
Nairobi on 1st June, 1964. The embassy’s location changed several times
before we built our current office in Upper Hill in 2006.
Deep People-to-People
Relations
In the last half a century, Japan and Kenya have
built strong ties at various levels: government, private sector as well as
grassroots level. The first official
visit by a senior Japanese government official was the one by the then Foreign
Minister Mr. Sunao Sonoda in July 1979. Since
then, more than 40 high-level government officials and politicians have set
their foot in Kenya. Prime Minister
Shinzo Abe also visited Kenya in January 2001 when he accompanied the then
Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori as his Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary.
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His Imperial Highness
Naruhito, the Crown Prince, greeted by the late Prof. Wangari Maathai
(Kyodo
News, March 2010)
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Japan’s Royal Family has also visited this
beautiful country several times. There
were official visits by His Majesty Akihito, the Emperor of Japan, then the
Crown Prince, in 1983 and by His Imperial Highness Naruhito, the Crown Prince,
in March 2010.
Japan has also received a
number of high-level delegations from Kenya, including President Danniel T.
arap Moi and President Mwai Kibaki. Recently,
Deputy President William Ruto visited Japan to attend the Fifth Tokyo
International Conference on African Development (TICAD V) in May and June 2013.
Our people-to-people interactions
are not limited to the political level. Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JOCV) were
first dispatched to Kenya in 1966. Since
then, more than 1,500 volunteers came to work side by side with Kenyan people
in local communities. In addition, an
increasing number of Japanese organizations are operating in Kenya at the grassroots
level. Currently almost 30 Japanese NGOs
are active in various parts of this country.
Japanese wazee (seniors in
Kiswahili) have also played an important role in boosting Japan’s presence in
this country. For example, a Japanese
businessman Mr. Yoshiyuki Sato introduced Japan’s corporate management style
that cares each and every employee after he moved to Kenya in 1966. He founded Kenya Nuts Company, which is known
for its brand “Out of Africa,” and started a staff loan system as well as an
office clinic there. Another mzee Mr.
Toru Seki opened a Japanese restaurant called Nihonjin Club in Nairobi in 1981
and promoted
Washoku, or Japanese cuisine. There are
many other Japanese wazee who have dedicated themselves in promoting friendship
with Kenyan people.
Sports exchange has also bridged the two countries, Kenya has the
largest number of foreign athletes living in Japan. Mr. Douglas Wakiihuri, who won the gold medal
in the 1987 World Championship and the silver medal in the Seoul Olympic Games,
moved to Japan at the age of 16 to become a marathon runner. The late Samuel Wanjiru, the gold medalist of
the Beijing Olympic Games, was also trained in Japan.
| Mr. Douglas Wakiihuri |
Since the establishment of
our embassy in 1964, our Japanese mission has always enjoyed a cordial
relationship with the Government and the people of Kenya. I want to take this opportunity to express my
gratitude for the long-enjoyed friendship. Asante sana!
