[1][2][3][4][5] Japan had some historical experience with Africa and little interest in economic ties with the region, except for development of raw material supplies.
[6] Historically, Japan sought to maintain close ties with the United States while also establishing or sustaining positive relations with non-Communist African countries.
Despite the fact that South Africa remained Japan's largest trading partner in the region, both exports and imports in 1988 had declined by more than one-third from their value in 1980.
[8] In 1989, Japan made very large increases in aid to Africa with the announcement of a US$600 million grant program for the next three years.
[10] Other investments focused on increasing agricultural output, promoting quality education, building and maintaining infrastructure, and health management.