Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 9) was held in Yokohama City, Japan, from August 20th to 22nd, 2025. Our JICA-NUITM team, under the JICA Grassroots project, also joined this important forum.
TICAD 9 was organized by the Japanese Government and co-hosted by the United Nations, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the World Bank, and the African Union Commission.
This forum gathered International Organizations, Partner countries, Private companies, and civil society organizations committed to advancing the Development of Africa.
JICA-NUITM’s Objectives
At TICAD 9, our team’s main objectives were
- To raise awareness of tungiasis among people in Japan and across African countries.
- To showcase the milestone achieved over the last 5years in the sustainable control of Tungiasis in Homabay, Kenya.
- To share strategies, activities, and plans that made these achievements possible
- To learn from other organizations, both in Africa and Japan.
The Nagasaki Booth on Sustainable Control of Tungiasis
To highlight these achievements, JICA-NUITM staff prepared an exhibition booth with a variety of materials:
- Information, Education, Communication (IEC)Materials,
- Newsletters Vol. 1 to 10,
- Brochures
- Success story pictures of patients
- Mapped areas after the baseline Survey (Indicating endemic areas and non-endemic)
- A poster outlining the project Background, Objectives, Main Activities, Results, Good practices, Sustainability measures, and Acknowledgement.
Visitors’ Reactions
Many Japanese visitors reacted with surprise, asking, “Does such a disease really exist?” and showed strong interest in the issue.
Visitors from African countries had mixed responses: some were surprised to learn that tungiasis is still present in certain regions, while others immediately recognized it as a familiar disease, saying, “That’s tungiasis.”
Through our participation in TICAD, we were able to raise awareness not only among those who had never heard of tungiasis, but also among people who knew of the disease but were unfamiliar with possible countermeasures.
Although tungiasis is officially recognized as one of the Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), this occasion helped bring it into the spotlight, and we believe it has contributed to raising its recognition even further.
Right to left, Mr.Sato Takeshi, Prof Yasuhiko Kamiya, Ms.Sharon Anam, Ms.Shiho Hara, and Mr.Gabriel Gumba.JICA-Nagasaki staff on Sustainable Tungiasis Control Project.
Prof.Elijah Songok Ag. Director General KEMRI, accompanied by other Kenyans, also visited our booth.
A Japanese Member of Parliament also visited the jiggers project booth.
JICA-NUITMs staff with former Project Health Expert Ms.Kana Suzuki.