Given the outcomes of the Aichi 2005 expo, the Japanese government has organized a trade fair to exhibit African products.

Japan, according to Mr Augustus Mutooro, an official in charge of trade fairs in the Uganda Exports Promotion Board (UEPB) says the fair will reinforce Japan’s interest in Africa after the six months of the Aichi exposition.

The fair, under the theme, ‘One Village, and One Product’’ will reveal products from various African countries.

Mr Mutooro said that products like coffee which won the top spot amongst the Japanese consumers during the previous Archi expo and vanilla which was very popular will be exhibited.

Besides, there will also be business meetings between the Japanese buyers and the African contestants to endorse further penetration of African products into the Japanese markets.

According to a report on the Aichi exposition (from the UEPB), the 2005 expo which received 22 million visitors exposed Uganda to the Japanese public, which knows little, or nothing about Africa and Uganda in particular. It also exposed Uganda to other countries, which participated in the expo, the African pavilion of which Uganda was part of, received two million visitors.

The report also adds that Ugandan coffee and tourism, especially the gorillas caught a lot of attention and that by the time the Ugandan team left Japan, the Ugandan embassy was receiving a lot of enquiries and applications for visas to the country.

By Tanah Hadijah

Uganda Travel News