Accra, Ghana -- “I will never give up on Africa. Dr. Noguchi, too, never gave up. He, also, always attached importance to what was happening on the ground. In that spirit, I would like to continue working together to defeat Africa’s problems. We have a common objective. Let us together push closer to the solutions we all seek.”

These remarks were made by Yohei Sasakawa, Chairman of The Nippon Foundation at the recent Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize Memorial Symposium, held in Accra, Ghana. The event was attended by the Crown Prince of Japan, high ranking Japanese officials, Ghana dignitaries, and international medical and agricultural experts.

The purpose of the symposium was to renew public interest in the mission of the Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize, which honors outstanding individuals in the fight against disease in Africa.

These efforts contribute not only to the health and welfare of the African people, but also to all humankind, through public discussion on the issues of medical research and health services in Africa. His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince of Japan also gave a brief talk at the gathering.

Symposium panelist Yohei Sasakawa, Chairman, The Nippon Foundation

Sasakawa spoke about his involvement in the issues of starvation, poverty and disease in Africa, and in nurturing the human resources needed for social development.

He said that he shared in Dr. Hideyo Noguchi’s belief in a hands-on approach, and spent about one third of each year in developing countries. In regard to poverty and disease, he spoke about his experiences in promoting agricultural development and how this is connected to disease prevention.

“Many of you do humanitarian work. You research new treatments for diseases such as HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria. You supply drugs and vaccines. Thanks to your efforts, many lives have been saved. Many have been freed from pain and suffering. I share your motivations. I fight disease by helping people whose resistance to infection has been lowered by malnutrition. I help them to secure a food supply. This builds up their strength and makes it harder for them to fall ill,” he told the gathering.

Mr Sasakawa’s work over the last 24 years has supported agricultural development in sub-Saharan Africa, where small farmers make up 70 percent of the population. The aim of The Nippon Foundation’s work there is to increase food production.

Its African agricultural development project is called Sasakawa Global 2000, or SG2000. It teaches planned agriculture, using small amounts of chemical fertilizer and high-grade seeds, producing crops rich in nutrition. Local agricultural extension workers sweat alongside farmers to help the system take root. SG2000’s methods are easy to use and crop yields have doubled or even tripled in some places.

SG2000’s increased yields have greatly improved farmers’ health, and with enough to eat, they are becoming more active. Output is increasing. Farmers now have a surplus that they can sell at market, and the extra money they earn buys them needed provisions and medicines. They can go to clinics, and as farming families grow stronger, the infant mortality rate is also declining, explained Sasakawa.

“However,” he said, “these methods are only being used in a number of select African countries. Food shortages are still one of the continent’s major challenges. Malnourishment blocks the improvement of all facets of health, including disease prevention. Many who are malnourished get diseases such as malaria, diarrhea and TB. These further sap the strength of already-weakened bodies. This is especially so among children. Every year, eight-point-eight million children under five die around the world. Half die from malnutrition.”

Sasakawa pointed out that in 2000, the international community agreed on Millennium Development Goals. The aim was to address the serious problems facing developing countries, problems such as poverty and infectious diseases. Yet in Africa, poverty remains as severe as ever, and it is said that the Millennium Development Goals are far from being achieved.

"This is something that all of you are wrestling with, but the problems are so difficult because they are complex and intertwined," commented Sasakawa.

Although SG2000 has been in operation for 24 years, “it has not shown as dramatic a success as Asia’s “Green Revolution,” he noted, “and I constantly ask myself if our current approach is appropriate.

The Crown Prince of Japan Talks With Yohei Sasakawa at Noguchi Symposium

“Furthermore, environmental groups and academics in advanced nations sometimes criticize our use of small amounts of chemical fertilizer, saying that only organic farming should be used.

“I welcome such comments and criticism as reviewing one’s activities from different perspectives can often bring a new awareness. But in whatever we do, it is very important that we strive to take a broad viewpoint that includes the people we are trying to reach,” he said, responding to such criticism.

He questioned the example of chemical fertilizer versus organic farming, saying that if chemical fertilizers are forgone, “Will we still be able to produce enough to eat, given the unpredictable rainfall and insufficient number of irrigation systems?”

Secondly, he raised the point that if harvests decline with a switch to organic methods, then the area for cultivation must be expanded into forest areas, leading to further deforestation.

Since farmers feed their livestock with what little spare produce they have and use the animal dung as fuel, they are already using the things that the pro-organic-farming people recommend as replacements to chemical fertilizers.

After carefully evaluating all these issues, SG2000 decided to recommend the use of appropriate amounts of chemical fertilizers, Sasakawa explained.

“Of course, given the environment and the pace of change in Africa, I cannot say this will always be the best way. As Dr. Noguchi believed, self-satisfaction leads to rot,” added Sasakawa.

He emphasized the need for cooperation across a wide spectrum in order to deal with these agricultural challenges, citing the success of such broadly-based joint efforts in the fight against leprosy.

“In the beginning, the problem was so big that we could not see just where we were headed. But then the WHO, governments, pharmaceutical companies, NGOs and the press all came together to eliminate the disease as a public health problem. Each had a role to play.

“In 1985, leprosy was a problem in 122 countries, including 53 in Africa. Today, just two countries have yet to pass this milestone. Thanks to the cooperation of Africans on the ground, every single country on this continent has succeeded.

“Because of this experience, I will never give up on Africa. Dr. Noguchi, too, never gave up. He, also, always attached importance to what was happening on the ground. In that spirit, I would like to continue working together to defeat Africa’s problems. We have a common objective. Let us together push closer to the solutions we all seek,” Sasakawa concluded.