This webinar is over. Thank you very much for the global participation!
We organize a Japan/South Africa joint webinar on Covid-19 on the 4th of July, Saturday, starting at 11 am (South Africa time) = 6 pm (Japan time), inviting distinguished guest speakers from both Africa and Asia.
Please download a flyer with basic information.
The conference page is here
Registration is very simple. Please click here
Concept
The COVID-19 global pandemic has had a severe impact on all aspects of society, changing daily life, limiting local transport and international mobility, disrupting work and the functioning of the economy and exacerbating poverty and social inequality. Many believe that the COVID-19 recession is probably the deepest since the Second World War and has affected most countries since the long depression of the 1870s. Despite this consensus, cooperative responses at the global level have been weak, while the domestic response in the industrialized world has been timely and substantial. Examples include the European Union with the European Solidarity and Japan, which has somewhat succeeded in containing the pandemic without massive lockdown or mass testing like in China and South Korea. There is thus increasing concern that the impact of the COVID-19 will be more significant than anticipated in developing countries, especially in Africa, because of the low capacity to tackle both health and economic crisis. Most of the African countries are still fighting the first wave of virus, and at the time of this writing, there has been a rapid rise in the daily number of confirmed cases while the number of tests to cases is low. The pressure to reopen the economies to limit the economic damage could spark the second wave of the virus, as it is ongoing in China. As the crisis unfolds, it is crucial to take stock of current challenges and responses and to reflect on new directions for global development post-COVID-19.
On Saturday, July 4, the Center for Japanese Studies (CJS) at the University of Pretoria, in collaboration with the Japan Society for Afrasian Studies will host a webinar discussing how ongoing initiatives can help mitigate the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, either in the immediate coping phase or when economies start to recover. The event is supported by the Graduate School of International Development, Nagoya University, and the Institute for Future Initiatives, The University of Tokyo.
The event will feature framing remarks by Vick Ssali, President of the Japan Society for Afrasian Studies and lecturer at Aichi Gakuin University, followed by a panel discussion.
Panel discussants include Christian Otchia of Nagoya University, Scarlett Cornelissen of the University of Stellenbosch, Ayako Takemi of the University of Tokyo, Sithembile Mbete of the University of Pretoria, and Masaki Inaba of the Africa Japan Forum. The discussion will be moderated by Rangarirai Muchetu of Doshisha University.
Conference Date: July 4, Saturday, 2020
Conference Venue: Zoom.
Registration required: https://bit.ly/37Jc3tU
Inquiries: Inquiries about this online event should be directed to:
Christian Otchia, Graduate School of International Development, Nagoya University
E-mail: otchia@gsid.nagoya-u.ac.jp
Agenda
11:00 (SAST), 18:00 (JST): Framing remarks
Vick Ssali
President, Japan Society for Afrasian Studies; Lecturer, Aichi Gakuin University
11:10 (SAST), 18:10 (JST): Roundtable discussion
Christian Otchia
Associate Professor, Graduate School of International Development, Nagoya University
Scarlett Cornelissen
Professor, Department of Political Science, University of Stellenbosch
Ayako Takemi
Project Member, Institute for Future Initiatives, the University of Tokyo
Sithembile Mbete
Lecturer, Department of Political Sciences, University of Pretoria
Masaki Inaba
Director of Global Health Programme, Africa Japan Forum
12:00 (SAST), 19:00 (JST): Q&A session
Closing remarks
Keiko Arai
Centre for Japanese Studies, University of Pretoria
